


Rise of the Second Empire

by Phynxlegion



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-06
Updated: 2016-07-07
Packaged: 2018-06-06 19:58:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 37,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6767998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phynxlegion/pseuds/Phynxlegion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vader senses the force awakening within a diplomat’s preteen daughter. After the High Chancellor orders him to keep away, Vader is forced to make plans which will drastically affect the course of history that his master has planned.  Occurred to me and was inspired to write this after a week-long Star Wars trip. After I wrote the outline, realized the complexity of how Fubar this would become, and ran with it. Enjoy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Senses

Pushing his way through the wave of Stormtroopers, he boils internally faced with wiping out the remaining Jedi scattered across the galaxy. With word of an attempt to rebuild the republic through a band of resistance fighters, he knew he had root out the remaining vestiges of the republic within the senate. With too much at stake, he had to manipulate the feeble-minded delegates with a certain finesse which didn’t raise too many eyes. Hunting down the Jedi consumed his every thought and hunting down leads was the only thing which drove him for the past eleven years. With his master yanking his leash every time he puts strong pressure on a diplomat or when his search leads to a powerful member of the senate, he truly despised politics. 

Intercepting Bail Organa’s shuttle before it leaves Coruscant, he hoped he could find a resistance spy which was aiding renegade Jedi and the resistance. With his troops holding the shuttle from leaving, he knew the search would at least result in the spy’s capture, though Chancellor Palpatine had ordered him not to arrest any of the royal family. That act only enraged him further, like denying a predator of his kill. His master’s weakness was becoming dangerously obvious. Despite his strength and mastery of the force, he allowed his innate weakness to decide the course of action, rather than his perception of the universe through the force. This only added to his uncertainty of the Sith master’s wisdom.  
Arriving at the shuttle landing, his troopers kept the senators and staff away from the ship as they continued their search. His lead storm trooper steps forward updating him on the search.  
“Lord Vader, they are still searching the ship. We are about ten minutes from completion.”

Vader shakes his head, and extends the force. With confidence, he bellows. “Concentrate your search in the engine compartment. He is there.”  
From the corralled diplomats seething with anger, Bail Organa shouts for Vader’s attention, like an irritating yapping lap pet. From inside of the shuttle, his troops report the spy had been apprehended and they were dragging him out, liberating his attention from the search. With an annoyed walk, he approaches the diplomats stirred into frenzy by the charismatic senator. As they threaten sanctions, Vader lifts his hand towards them willing them to calm down and submit to his authority. Terrified, Leia Organa, grabs her father’s hand and closes her eyes, remembering the stories she’d heard of the vile pawn of the Chancellor. As she braces for trouble, she feels a wave of control thrust into her mind, forcing her to submit to his might. Instinctively, she pushes it away but the strength of the push is beyond her.

Vader, confident of his abilities is taken back as Bail Organa is able to resist him. Pushing harder, he closes with the aged diplomat and is preparing to physically reprimand him for defiance, but recognizes the slack expression he wears. Stepping back and looking down, he sees the senator’s young daughter cringing tightly in defiance of his power. Releasing them, he steps back in awe, hidden by his powerfully ominous black armor. Everyone is dazed and humiliated except for the small girl, who slowly looks up at the monstrous Lord Darth Vader. Instead of fear or reverence, her eyes burn with anger and resistance against his use of power. Spinning quickly on his heels, he yells over his shoulder to the assembled crowd.  
“You and your party are cleared to depart, senator. Pray this doesn’t happen again.”  
Without waiting for the spy, he exits the landing area and waits in the central receiving area. With the troops and spy in tow, he leads them to the interrogation and detention building and lets his trained agents interrogate him before termination. With his mind in turmoil over the child’s strength in the force, a thought begins to percolate and he suppresses it deep in his darkest of corners, in places hopefully his master won’t delve. 

“My master, I have sensed a stirring in the force.” Vader remains down on one knee. What seems like an eternity passes before the Chancellor acknowledges him.   
“I have sensed nothing recently. Perhaps your attention is misdirected?”

Vader suppresses his annoyance. “I am not mistaken. Senator Organa’s daughter, Leia, seems to have untrained force skills. I recommend we terminate her immediately.”  
Shaking his head in anger, the Chancellor slams his fist against his table. “YOU WILL DO NO SUCH THING! Bail Organa is far too powerful to move against! We must wait until our battle station is completed and then we will have unrestrained power within the galaxy! As I have never sensed even a glimmer of talent from the child, I seriously doubt your claim. Perhaps it was the power of the two of them which gave them the spark which you sensed?”   
Nodding, Vader acquiesces. “As you say master, you know me better than I.”

The Sith master studies his pupil and is satisfied by his submission, and the conflict within him passes. “I will forget we had this disagreement, as you are still my pupil in training. Many other senators are of no consequence to my power or plans, but Senator Organa has too many followers, and represents the vocal majority in the senate. In time, we will eliminate his power; but not now, and not against anyone in his family.”   
Rising from his desk, he motions for Vader to rise as well. “Put your thoughts aside and concentrate on eliminating the rogue Jedi running amuck. Though their temples and training facilities are smoking ruins, the few surviving Jedi are still a threat. Make this your primary mission my young apprentice.”

Nodding solemnly, Vader replies. “Permission to use some of these force adepts I’ve uncovered as my servants? I need my operatives to be an extension of my will, not just servants. There are a few who would willing act in this capacity, and those are whom I speak of.”

Nervous, the Chancellor has the will and determination to decline his pupil’s request, but realizes the mission ahead is not an easy one. Time was working against them, and the Jedi strays would eventually join into packs of feral beasts. With a deep sigh, he nods to Vader.  
“Of course, that is well within your rights. Make it so, my apprentice. Leave no stone unturned, and ensure every Jedi is exterminated. I understand it is difficult to root out these remaining rats, so your tools must adapt as well. So be it. Minimize their use, as they can sometimes develop a will of their own.”

Respectful of his master’s wisdom, Vader leaves his side and returns to his quarters. Spending the remaining day planning, he leaves his room to activate his first agent. Their training had begun years prior, getting his master’s approval here and now was only a technicality. Arriving in the alley below the middle-income living zone, Vader patiently waits until a hover bike pulls into the alley and comes to a halt; a woman in her mid-twenties steps off and drops to one knee in the slimy wet street. With light olive skin and dark brown eyes, she grovels appropriately.  
“My Master! How may I serve you?”

Vader nods approvingly. “You have a new mission Ayla, a role I need you to fill. You must infiltrate and win the trust and favor of a specific royal family, and grow close to their child. The child must never suspect your disloyalty to them, but through you we will shape her destiny. One day, I will have the child as my servant and you will have earned my gratitude and respect.”  
Throwing herself onto his feet, she begs and pleas. “Master! That is all I live for! How can I fulfil my purpose in the universe?”  
Handing her a small data storage unit, he turns abruptly and disappears down the street. Sneaking back to her apartment, paid entirely by the Dark Lord, she opens her portable viewer and reviews the information. With millions of credits at her disposal, she sifts through the detailed personal files of her target family: Organa.


	2. Capture

The diplomatic courier leaves their secret location in the asteroid field, and Captain Antilles motions to his royal passenger, Princess Leia Organa. As she spins in her chair, she motions for her protector, Lady Amena Duros to scan for the frequency her spies would transmit on. The dark-haired woman in her mid-thirties, flips the communication gear into receive-only mode, and waits for their spy to arrive. Knowing they will only have minutes before the Imperial cruisers will be on them, they keep their hyper drive online to blast out the field. As the time of their rendezvous passes, many hopes appear to be dashed and smashed accordingly.  
An hour past their meeting, their proximity alarms scream, and the pilot prepares to accelerate to hyperspace, only for Leia to scream out to stop.  
“It’s him! He’s transmitting!”  
Amena immediately fires back. “Receiving! It will be done in two minutes!”

Everyone on the bridge of the ship seems to stop breathing as the clock counts down. With a minute to go, an another proximity alarm screams out making the navigator, a younger man, not much older than the princess, yell out across the deck. “Incoming Imperial fighter. It’s one of their long-range models. It’s scanned our contact’s ship, and has changed its vector to intercept!”  
Cursing under her breath, Leia motions for the Captain to prepare to leave. “Tell our contact to abandon the transfer, his life isn’t worth it!”  
The Communications officer shakes his head. “He’s not listening!”  
Amena sounds off the seconds until completed. As she reaches zero, the small scout ship explodes in a brilliant flash. And Leia feels her heart sink, as she feels his life-force extinguished. The man she was to call her husband gave his life for the data, and nothing anyone could say would console her. As Amena confirms the upload, The captain spins the ship around and travels two seconds before transitioning into Hyperspace. As the tears roll down Leia’s cheeks, she swipes them away with her long white sleeve. Amena motions for the princess to retire to her quarters, and she wraps her arm around the young girl, providing the only strength the princess will accept. Her companion and friend since she was twelve, Amena was everything and more to her. 

From coach to confidant, Amena represented Leia in and out of the royal family circles. Originally a measly chamber maid, they quickly became friends. When her first protector was killed in a shuttle crash when she was twelve, Leia pushed her parents to assign Amena as her new protector. Her strength meant everything to Leia, and without her, she would never had had the will to accept Mothma’s guidance in politics. She was a superb organizer, very handy in the senate, and no one dared to cross her; well no one except Mon Mothma. Unfortunately, Amena and Mothma couldn’t stand being in the same room as each other more than five minutes. Mothma confided that she felt the woman was not a good and wholesome person to be around Leia and Amena knew how Mothma felt. Butting heads with everything from politics, to good food, the two were volatile together. More often than not, Leia would simply ask Amena to wait in an adjoining room until they finished.  
Yet privately, Leia leaned heavily on Amena and couldn’t imagine living without her aide. She cries in her arms, and collapses; for once in so many weeks, she lets her defenses down. As the hours pass, she regains her strength in time for the warning claxons ripping her back into the diplomatic persona she wears. Taking heavy fire from a star destroyer, Amena leaves her side only long enough to get a heads up from the captain. Leia barely has enough time to change her boots and don a while hooded cloak. As their ship is boarded, Amean returns and hands the plans to the Deathstar to Leia.  
“I’ve purged the ship’s computers, and this is the only copy left. If anyone but you is captured with the plans it means certain death. At least your family’s name will protect you.”  
Nodding in agreement Leia palms the data, and disappears down the corridor. As she watches Leia disappear into the bowels of the ship, she patiently waits to be captured by the storm troopers. Even as weapon fire rages outside her door, she remains calm and in place. When they open her unlocked, door, she raises her hands and accepts the shackles on her wrists. Processed into the detention cell, she is isolated from her ship mates. An hours passes and finally Lord Vader blesses her with his presence. Only after the door closes, and given complete privacy, does she breakdown and grovel at his feet like an old pet reunited after many years.  
“My master! I have obeyed your every command and executed your orders without question. How may I serve you?”  
The resonating shrill of his mechanical breathing fills her ears, making his hesitation excruciating to endure.  
“You have done well, my child.”

From under his robes, he produces a package of folded clothes for her to change into. Throwing it at her on the floor, he waits until she’s changed and disposes her old clothes in the trash bin. Rising to her feet as he raises his hand, she stands triumphantly in a black and red uniform. With matching boots, she feels finally whole with her master before her. He continues as she stands ready for inspection.  
“You have earned my respect and honor, little one. Your old life is wiped away. From now on they will call you The Fist, and your orders will be honored as if I gave them personally. You answer only to me; not even the Emperor will give orders to you. You are now complete, and your training begins alongside my other priceless gems. The Princess is on her way to the operational battle station. You will take my pet project and replace the Princess with her just before they execute her. Once you have the Princess, bring her back to the coordinates of my inner sanctum. There we will begin to train everyone in the Force, and rebuild the galaxy in my image, through you and the few like you.”  
With a deep bow, she follows Lord Vader out of the cell and no one ever questions her place at his side. Waiting until the princess is transferred to the Death Star, she jumps onboard a prison transport where Vader’s special prisoner waits catatonically. With orders to hold the prisoner on the battle station until the Star Destroyer Gnasher arrives to transfer the prisoner to a penal work camp; she knew with Darth Vader’s orders, no one would question her. As she boards the shuttle, a face from her past steps forward with a case. Clad in a similar uniform, the young woman had her blonde locks tucked firmly in a bun on the back of her head. Staring intently at the aged features, Ayla smiles suddenly recognized the street urchin from her youth. Taking the case, she nods and smiles warmly seeing someone from her distant past.  
“Delphi, it is pleasing to see you again. Our lord and master took care of you as well as he did me.”

The blonde nods and motions to sit beside the hooded prisoner. Seeing the prisoner in hard restraints, Ayla opens the case and smiles seeing her old blaster pistols clean and in optimal condition despite sitting in storage for over eight years. Putting the holsters on each thigh, she inserts her pistols on each leg, and feels whole once more. The shuttle lurches into flight and the quick trip from the star destroyer Sinister to the waiting battle station takes less than ten minutes. Darth Vader flew his own ship to the station, but she knew they wouldn’t exchange another word until she arrived at his secret base.  
The transfer of prisoners took half an hour, and she was glad she finally had a few hours to relax before the swap occurred. With Delphi running interference, the plan was nearly flawless. She had been planning the operation with having no help, but her old friend’s presence was highly fortuitous. Checked into visiting officer quarters for eight hours, it provided the pair a needed opportunity of rest. With her mind racing, she can’t imagine sleeping yet her eyes snap shut the moment her head hits the pillow. 

In Ayla’s mind, she watches how the Dark Lord stands with Grand Moff Tarkin as Princess Leia watches her home world of Alderaan is destroyed. A part of Ayla jerks suddenly remembering the friends she once had on the planet, despite her false lineage. She noted a small handful were once people she called friends, but she remembers she was lying, thus she never had any friends. Feeling the sadness and turmoil emanating from the princess, she extends her senses as Lord Vader had trained her, and she gently reaches out to comfort the distraught girl. The effect is virtually instantaneous, as Leia is able to regain her composure and march back to her cell defeated and homeless.  
Waking suddenly, Ayla nods in appreciation to Delphi for waking her gently. Donning her cloak and weapons, they march down to the detention level and unpack their prisoner. Releasing her restraints and shackles, they remove the black hood to uncover a perfect copy of Princess Leia. Removing her ball gag, Ayla notices the mentally neutral expression in her nearly lifeless eyes. The woman who once owned and controlled the body was a distant memory. Removing all the woman’s clothes, she sits naked and devoid of life in the cell. With the authority of Lord Vader, they excuse the two prison guards. After verifying her orders, they take a break, and warn they will return shortly. Noting how the orders were not to be stored in the computers, they also didn’t want to be executed for abandoning their posts. Ensuring the doors are sealed tight, Ayla enters the princess’s cell, and stuns her. With Delphi’s help, they strip the princess of her clothes, get her into the doppelganger’s, and swap them between cells. Satisfied with their work, they have seven minutes to spare before the guards return. With the princess tucked safely in the double’s cell, they note the time and inform the guards they will return in an hour to take their prisoner to the Gnasher. 

On their private communications channel, Lord Vader notifies them he is departing the station before the Gnasher arrives and the scheduled execution. Acknowledging his message, they reply and wait outside the detention level. From a remote camera they installed, they watch the guards march the fake princess out to a shooting platform and three Stormtroopers execute her in a hail of blaster fire. Nodding, Delphi keeps an eye on the real princess as she sleeps off the effects of the stun ray under all the restraints. 

Ayla notes the recovery of a light freighter, a Corellian YT-model, from the debris of Alderaan. Though the crew jumped ship after take-off, she sensed there was more to it than the witless ground crews could see. Knowing that she couldn’t help them without jeopardizing her mission, she has little choice but to let the inexperienced crews make mistakes so they could learn from them. As the Gnasher arrives, they spring into action and collect their prisoner. Keeping an eye on the freighter, she notices after they finish doing an exhaustive search, they turned up nothing and unceremoniously ejected the empty ship into space. Feeling four lifeforms still onboard, she smiles and laughs privately. Delphi leads the gagged and restrained princess onto her feet and out the detention block. The trip to the Gnasher took less than ten minutes; and after an hour of transferring her to a secure private cell, the pair gets eighteen hours of rest before they arrive at the Imperial station on Malacor.


	3. Flight

Understanding the officer’s concerns with simply letting two imperial operatives take a prisoner to an unspecified location with blanket orders was not just unsafe but improper; Ayla sighs and controls her building anger. 

“Commnder Niason, I hear you. I understand your apprehension to follow what could appear as an illegal order, but Lord Vader’s orders are not ones which one simply can choose to obey or not. He has given us a mission, which if we do not follow them explicitly, it will literally mean our heads. I will sign whatever document you want me to cover you, but I am obeying his order with or without your help. No one is allowed to come near my prisoner, and no one is allowed to ask questions. Those are my orders, commander.”

The physically overbearing man growls from his desk, knowing he has little choice but to obey. Lord Vader’s temper for crossing him was galactically recognized, and if he somehow survived the ordeal, his career was effectively ended. With every fiber of his being telling him simply obey and ignore Lord Vader’s agents, his training and discipline simply couldn’t look the other way. Running out of options, he sees the futility of his endeavors and processes the space vehicle authorization order. The loss of a long range shuttle with a hyper-drive was of little consequence, as he had sixteen in service at any time, and he rarely needed more than eight up at once to execute his missions. In the grand scheme of things, it was all imperial property, and by all rights they were authorized to use the equipment. Tossing the signed authorization at the woman, he dismisses her and drops the subject.

Showing Delphi the authorization letter, she lets her start the pre-flight on the ship while she clears their departure with dock master. With so many levels bureaucracy on top of the other, she couldn’t imagine how anything got accomplished in the military. Being on assignment for over nine years was still taking a considerable amount of getting used to. After depositing the letter in dock master’s hands at his office, the cycle of red-tape was complete. A few taps on his computer granted them departure authorization at their convenience, and nothing else was needed. She feels him engrossed in her exquisite lines and shape as she walks out of his office. Not needing the force to feel his eyes all over her, it merely verified what she already knew. For a woman in her mid-thirties, she never let her physical strength or prowess diminish from her assignment. She constantly battled her body’s desire to accumulate a pound a year, and managed to remain at the same weight since she was nineteen. Grinning, she rushes back to the hanger to assist Delphi and ensure their restraint system will hold the princess until they reach the secret base. After two hours, they are satisfied, and Ayla receives the cart of thirty prepared meals. Loading them into the refrigerator, they see nothing else remaining except to collect their prisoner. Delphi has the ship on standby mode, and lowers the back ramp to wait with two blaster rifles leveled at the ramp. If someone were to try and take back the princess, this would be their last opportunity.

Ayla grabs eight randomly selected Stormtroopers and orders them to escort her with the prisoner. Though she sensed nothing unusual, she didn’t want to get this far along in their plan, just to fail now. Checking the cell, she’s satisfied with her status, and orders the troops to wait until she comes out with her. Making the princess stand, she turns her around with her back to the guards, before she tentatively raises the hood. The tear-streaked visage of the young princess greets her and she lowers it back down before anyone can recognize her. Even with their security clearances, she didn’t trust anyone. Placing the princess in the middle of the troops with their weapons at the ready, they march out to the hanger. It takes less than ten minutes to arrive, and Ayla keeps her weapons trained on the troopers. Stopping them at the ramp, she escorts the princess up the ramp, and dismisses the troopers. Ayla keeps her weapon trained on them until its closed and latched shut. Securing her in the prisoner transfer chair, Delphi takes the pilot’s seat while Ayla keeps an eye on their prisoner. After a short flight to break atmosphere and orbit, they get the order to leave Malacor’s control space and initiate hyperspace. With a bright surge of light, they jet away and breathe a sigh of relief knowing the hard part of their mission was finally over.

 

Leaving the cockpit, Delphi motions for Ayla to put her mask on as she dons her own. With the hood the princess wore, the amazing piece of imperial gear obscured and garbled all the voices and noises she heard and rendered them unrecognizable. The red masks they wore effectively disguised their voices allowing them to finally let the Princess to breathe easier and let her jaw relax. After attaching a shock collar to Leia, they lock her into her seat and finally release her restraints Ensuring she can lift a plastic spoon to her mouth to feed herself, they pull off the hood. Leia instinctively closes her eyes as the dim cargo lights still hurt her. As she struggles to acclimate to the light, Ayla reaches over and removes the gag. With her voice garbled by the mask, she tries to soothe the distraught girl. The Princes coughs and groans from finally being liberated from the horrible restraint.

“We won’t be putting that back in if you behave from now on. All you’ve had are liquid meals. Think you are up to some real food? Well…real is not a good description. How about we just call it solid food and leave it there?”

Terrified beyond reason, Leia nods dumbly at the joke and accepts the reheated food tray. Too exhausted to complain, she realizes she’s on an imperial transport but cannot place the uniforms of the two women. Though they have imperial insignia and rank, the style was one she was not familiar with. Unimaginable pain radiates from her mouth having worn the gag far too long, and she struggles to chew mushy overcooked vegetables. Taking an hour to eat, she finally downs the last of the processed meat, and submissively lowers her head until the tray is taken away.

Satisfied, Ayla unlatches her restraints and allows her to use the latrine before returning her to her seat. Affixing the hood back over her head, Ayla puts two trays into the oven and waits a minute until they are ready. Using gloves, she takes them forward to the flight deck and hands Delphi hers. Facing the princess, Ayla eats alongside her old friend, while never taking her eyes off her charge. A sympathetic nerve wanted to soothe and comfort the young princes, especially after years of nurturing when her parents were off fulfilling countless roles and duties in their royal position. She was the girl’s confidant, best friend, disciplinarian, nanny, protector, and often bed nurse. There was no role she played in the girl’s life except maybe lover, and many times Ayla toyed with the young girl’s heart in that role as well. It only verified she had the child wrapped around her finger in every possible way; yet in many ways, so did the princess. This assignment was perhaps her most difficult beyond any infiltration and assassination missions in the past. Knowing the feelings will eventually pass, especially after she begins her training, she couldn’t wait for the rigorous training by Lord Vader to begin.

Finding her thoughts straying to many directions, she quickly wolfs down the vegetables and picks absently at the semi-meat product on the tray. Delphi reaches out and affectionately rubs Ayla’s tight leather-clad leg sensing the turmoil radiating from her elder leader. They had been strongly affectionate in their youth, but time and distance had finally taken their toll. Darth Vader had always looked the other direction when it came to their affection towards the other, and would often use their love for the other as a means to get them to willingly follow his orders. Even as the empire began to put themselves into day to day operations around the galaxy, Darth Vader resisted the chancellor’s social laws by excusing his elite troops from the numerous orders. Though Ayla and Delphi were but two of twenty known operatives, they were proud that he called them his elite, and not just his guards. The High Chancellor surrounded himself with a dozen elite guards at any one time, and had at least three times as many in the woodworks like Vader.

Unsure if they could rebuild the love from what they’d lost from time, Delphi stands and takes the used trays to the kitchenette. After rinsing them off, she slides them into the bottom of the cart to return to the flight kitchen whenever they returned to an imperial station. Stopping in front of Ayla, Delphi leans down and passionately kisses her. The electric jolt of forgotten love resuscitates her spirit, bringing her out of her depressive slump. Smiling, she immediately seizes the younger woman and returns the kiss with a fire brighter than a star going nova. Bringing her into a tight hug, she thanks her for reminding her what it was like to love once again. Promising to show her more than an appreciative kiss when the get to a private room, they accept their closeness as a fair temporary trade. Ayla glances at the countdown timer until they leave hyperspace. With twenty-six more hours ahead of them, she remembers why she hated intergalactic travel: they never have comfortable staterooms in shuttles. 

Caring for Leia was tedious at best. Ayla mentally referred to the girl as just her name, as the girl’s royal family was effectively wiped away, and as was her identity. The galaxy had been informed she was executed for illegally trafficking classified data and aiding the resistance, and the furor it created was managed well by the Chancellor. After a few dozen apologies, and mentioning that his battle station was capable of addressing any world which had a problem with his decisions, he summarily dismissed the senators and dissolved the last traces of the republic. By declaring himself Emperor, he effectively ended the discussions and rhetoric of the aged government. Delphi mentioned that Vader predicted this day, and that their purpose will be in picking up the pieces when the empire fell. Vader never saw the Emperor holding onto the galaxy under his rule. 

The galaxy functioned as long as the illusion of individual control existed. People, no matter the species, were content as long as they believed they had control over their pathetic lives. The Emperor sought to removed that illusion and wake everyone up to his power over them, and Vader only now understood this fact. In his youth, he too felt the need to lift the veil from their eyes; but after his exposure to the people of the galaxy while pursuing Jedi, Vader slowly altered his comprehension of the psychological variables of the galaxy. While he would pale in comparison as a political figure managing the galaxy compared to Palpatine, he knew he shouldn’t behave like his master either. 

Delphi filled the void which her lover Ayla filled when she was sent away on assignment. Earning Darth Vader’s respect was verified when he used her as his bouncing board for his thoughts. As his avatar in the outside world, Delphi walked amongst the general public because Vader never could. She was his courier, spy, eyes and ears for the inhabited galaxy around them. Without her, he knew he was out of touch with what was needed to manage the galactic affairs demanding his attention. Too many politicians inhabited the galaxy, and they had powers which even Darth Vader recognized were both tangible and important as the force was to him. 

As the timer counts down to zero, they take turns managing Leia, and show no hostility or anger towards the tired and scared girl. Leia’s confusion was without measure, as the imperial agents never mistreated or abused her. She genuinely senses their compassion albeit distant. As much as they wanted to handle and care for her with a comfortable level of detachment, Leia knew they didn’t enjoy the level of disconnect; and both had a negligible amount of fondness towards her. Their humanity was their strength and the reason for their lack of cruelty. Sensing the evil within them, a well of training and experience, she felt their control and mastery of that hidden and restrained beast. 

Amena had always told her how to sense her surroundings and the people around her, and now that training was essential in maintaining her wits about her. Launching herself into a meditative trance, she leaves her body and begins looking around the shuttle. As she drifts around, she turns to the cockpit and sees the pilot with her mask off. A beautiful blonde woman only a few years older than her, checks the hyperspace controls and manages the smooth flight in hyperspace. As she spins around to see the second agent, she jumps backwards as the face of the woman is obscured by a vast black hole, where no feature can be brought forward. The woman turns towards her and raises her hand. With a vicious and cold demeanor, she backhands Leia sending her tumbling back into her body and out of the trance. Despite the ferocity of the blow, she felt no anger or hatred towards her, just an incredible level of power and control.

The seat restraints allowed Leia more freedom than she’d experienced since her capture. Rubbing her chest in pain, she felt the pain not in her face, but her heart which pounded mercilessly in her chest. As she groans quietly, the hood is cruelly torn off her head and the masked agent stares down at her in a mocking posture.  
“Your connection to the force is notable child, but hardly impressive.”  
With a strong vehemence in her tone, Leia fires back. “My name is Princess Leia Organa, of Alderaan.”

Laughing mock cruelty, she replies. “No longer. Your world is gone. Your royal status was destroyed with your planet, and the galaxy has accepted your mock execution as fact. There is nothing left of the family Organa, and you are both penniless and powerless. Your designation was prisoner 128BK549-20C157, so your new name is Fifty-seven. You will answer to that name from now on, and your old name will pass into infinity without merit or concern.”  
Memorizing her words, Leia immediately interrogates her. “The force? You mean like the Jedi of old?”

Nodding, Ayla continues. “The force is neither good nor evil, child. It ties all beings together and unites us, like it or not. The Jedi abused their authority and sought to unbalance the universe, while Lord Vader brought balance to the force by balancing the scales. Now there are only a handful Jedi, as there are only a handful of Sith, as the balance should be. Neither has unchecked power or authority in the galaxy, as the universe intended.”

Leia senses only truth in her garbled words. “What makes you think I can tap into the force? I’m no Jedi, I’m just a diplomat!”  
Laughing, the woman shakes her head. “You are an adept, but in need of great tutelage.”

Leia sinks backwards into her chair sensing the familiar body and voice tone from the woman. As she searches her feelings, the woman interrupts her chain of thought. “The wise and powerful Lord Vader has defied the Emperor just to get you out of the line of fire! He signed your termination order, and our master sent us to steal you from the executioner at great personal risk. The Emperor is insane, and becoming careless in his leadership of the galaxy. Even he has foreseen Master Vader’s turning against him, but he believes he is too weak and fearful to act against him. We are to be trained in the force so we can bring order to the galaxy, once more. The Emperor’s idea of order is living under his boot, and that’s not how people want to live. Master Vader wants to let people live free of tyranny and oppression, but recognizes we need a strong military force to keep nefarious forces in check, just like we need to keep both the Jedi and Sith in check. If we let either side go unfettered, the scales topple and collapse. The Emperor is surrounded by sensitives like us, and we will be needed if we hope to remove him from power.”

Shaking her head, Leia refuses to accept the truth flowing out of the woman. Seeing little choice, Ayla tears off her mask and lets Leia stare into the face of her protector. Tears explode out of her eyes, confirming what she already knew, and Ayla goes to her knees to talk to her charge.

“I’m sorry little one, but I couldn’t let them kill you, and Master Vader’s plan was the only one which allowed you to live. I refuse to let the Emperor kill such a wonderful being, a true gem in the galaxy. Please consider his plan. He says he senses great strength and power emanating from you, and if I hadn’t of seen it with my own eyes, I would be skeptical too. You are indeed our only hope to save the galaxy from tyranny, and Master Vader has foreseen your greatness. He’s managed to keep you a secret from his master; and as a trained warrior of the force, we will rid the galaxy of the current unbalancing forces of the Emperor. Please consider the truth of what I speak.”

Trembling in fear, Leia sits in silence, confounded by the tangled lies and facts laid before her. As the shuttle leaves hyperspace, Leia is no closer to discerning the truth from the lies.


	4. Tick Tock

Lowering the ramp, the heavy volume of dripping humidity floods the shuttle, relieving them of the dry sterile and recycled air generated by the shuttles environmental package. With the cartridges capable lasting up to two years before changing, Delphi knew there was a procedure to clean them to get another month out of them before they simply stopped doing their job, but she hoped that wouldn’t be necessary. She’d heard the filters work at minimal efficiency after cleaning, and the oxygen levels were just barely above supporting human life. Not wishing to discover how living on low oxygen feels for twenty-four hours, she ensured the scheduled maintenance was accomplished in the past thirty days before taking the vehicle.   
Leia is flabbergasted that she isn’t shackled when she’s unlocked from her seat. With weak and wobbly legs, she takes a bottle of water offered to her as they walk towards the ramp. Tempted to make a wild grasp for one of their weapons, she reminded by her weakness that the thought was ill advised at best. Following behind the woman she used to know as Amena, she is surprised that a mammoth temple was just meters from the landing pad. Noticing the area was recently and regularly cleared of vegetation, she figures droids are probably busy at odd hours of the day. Unsure if it is dawn, dusk, or just a very cloudy day, she strains to see deep into the shadows. Using her senses, she senses nothing but the raw and wild jungle life slinking just past the tree line. 

From Ayla, an appreciative sigh of relief strikes her out of the gloom.   
“Very good. Yes, we are the only people around, there’s not another person on this planet except us. Our master uses this sanctuary time and again.”  
Leia practically spits out in anger. “Just say his DAMN name! It’s Vader! Darth Vader!”  
Shrugging indifferently, Ayla sighs. “Master Vader doesn’t want anyone interrupting us, so he chose this planet after discovering all its modern accommodations. He even told us to assign you to your own private quarters. Look! He’s not the same person we knew when we first met him.” 

Delphi immediate injects herself into the conversation. “He’s changed a lot over the years. As the emperor’s minion, he has seen his lapses in judgement, failed comprehension of the force, and the role he played in bringing balance to the force as the prophesies foretold. He recognizes he was manipulated by Senator Palpatine in destroying and murdering so many Jedi and younglings, and now he wants to rebalance the scales.”  
Ayla steps back in. “He wants to start training force adepts to be neither Sith nor Jedi, but a balancing force within the galaxy. He remembers reading of a time where there was third faction of force wielding warriors in the galaxy called the Greys: neither light nor darkness. They disappeared right after the Jedi Academy was founded, but the Sith sterilized their world. Before he can send us out to find where they went, he needs to train us to contend with the Emperor’s minions roaming the galaxy hunting down adepts like us. We must be fit to fight and destroy them if he can bring true balance back to the force once again. He knows he’s not pure and good, but he knows he cannot follow in the Emperor’s shadow any longer. Please, Leia, you are one of the last true force sensitives out there and the galaxy needs you. Delphi and I pale in comparison to your potential. We are only this powerful because Vader gives us a piece of his strength and power. You are the real thing, and the Emperor is afraid of you. We have seen the visions of you taking your place in leading this galaxy from the influences of the empire. You alone are its savior! Even more so, you are the last legitimate leader of noble blood to lead the galaxy in the vacuum of power when the emperor dies. The galaxy will ultimately turn to you for guidance and leadership during the dark hours of the fall. With the Force as your guide, you will achieve what few in the galaxy can ever hope to achieve: Sustained Peace.”

Shaking her head, Leia fights the wisdom and logic thrust at her feet after what she endured since her capture. Breathing heavily, she fights the rush of emotions resisting what the women tell her. Shaking her head she looks around her and the temple before her.  
“And he’s going to just teach us how to fight?”

Ayla laughs cordially. “Learning how to use the force is not about combat of the body, its warfare from within. Our heads get in the way of learning the ways of the force. As you progress, you will construct your own lightsaber and its strength will be tested with what you learn. This may take years, little one. We have time though. I have already paved the way for you to learn, it rests on you to walk the path.”  
Delphi powers down the ship and empties the kitchen of any items which can spoil, before she uses the auxiliary power unit to close the ramp. With it locked tight, she powers it down the rest of the way and seals the external panel. Walking into the temple, the external ancient stone works hid the modern complex within. With air conditioning and every imaginable comfort, Ayla was thankful that the facility had all the modern amenities minus any windows. Though each room was spacious at nearly 60 square meters, they were devoid of life and character. Ayla, having grown accustomed to elaborate colors and decorations had her heart sink seeing the dismal black stone walls and horrible lighting. Every room was nearly identical to the other with a bedroom, closet, a central work desk, and more importantly a private kitchen. 

As Delphi motions towards the first room on the right, Ayla nods and continues to the room diagonally across from them. “This one is yours of course. I’m not too sure how loud Delphi is going to be now that we’re back together. I had to leave her so that I could be with you, and she’s anxious to rekindle our relationship.”  
Momentarily taken back, Leia’s eyes widen as she suddenly comprehends the entire conversation. “Oh! Um…I guess that’s okay. I won’t judge. Um…you’re not locking me in my room or anything?”  
Shrugging, Ayla sighs. “No, should I?”

Leia realizes her situation is changing far too fast for her to comprehend, and Ayla lays her hand atop the young woman’s shoulder. “I’m sorry about the number fifty-seven stuff earlier. Look, its best for you to find a new name until the emperor is taken out. Don’t decide now, sleep on it. Give it a few days, but you will need a nice cryptic identity from now on. The emperor has spies everywhere, so you will wear the same uniform we have when your training is done. Master Vader will be bringing the last three sensitives in a few weeks, so Delphi and I will train you as much as we can before he arrives. Take two days to rest and recover from your ordeal. Delphi and I will make dinner for all of us in…ten hours. Your freezer should be fully stocked in case you get hungry before then. Don’t forget about the eighteen flight meals we still have. I know it’s not top cuisine, but it beats some of the emergency rations that they stocked here. I’d say if you want to talk just knock, but I think Delphi might get upset if I did…at least for today or so.”

Leia nods her head heavily. “Thank you Amena…I mean Ayla.” Patting Leia’s shoulder once more Ayla leaves the homeless princess to her thoughts and the huge cold apartment.  
Turning, Leia is unimpressed with the armored bodysuits and workout gear which greeted her in the closet. With sensible running shoes and good quality boots, she had more than enough gear for the months and years which lay ahead. Dumbfounded discovering multiple sized women’s underclothes in sealed packages in plastic containers, she finds various packages of her appropriate size and empties them neatly in an empty clothes drawer. Thumbing through the packaging, she discovers the containers were originally marked for delivery at Jedi Academy on Coruscant. Realizing much of it was almost twenty years old, she has few options for outer garments. Shaking her head, she finds a dozen which fit her, removes them from the plastic, and hangs them up. With an hour of her day used up, she heads into the shower and decompresses from her ordeal. As the soothing waves of warm water blast her body, she explodes in tears releasing the last of her stress from losing everything she held dearly. With nineteen years of memories obliterated by the Death Star, she cries incoherently in a crumpled mass on the shower floor. 

After half an hour, she regains her strength and finishes bathing. Exiting, she brushes her hair, finds a robe to throw on, and she meanders into the kitchen. Grabbing one of the flight meals, she looks through the pantry and discovers a plethora of spices and seasonings to enhance the bland and tasteless food they prepared. Impressed with her skills, she sits down on her couch and notices a data pad tucked in a hidden pocket on the side. Turning it on, she cannot believe it’s filled thousands of books and games to take her mind off her ordeal. Exhaling in disbelief, she discovers the book list is only two months old, and is tied to a library computer in the complex. Even more surprising was that the computer was linked to all the data pads and that she could initiate various networked games to play with other users. Though limited to within the complex, she felt her situation was seriously surreal.   
While she was made to feel like she wasn’t a prisoner, she couldn’t call herself free either. She knew her captors and seriously loved one of them; but with the great unveiling of the truth, she couldn’t dismiss the level of betrayal she felt. Feeling rebellious, she spends an hour sifting through the directories and discovers the inventory computer, and scans over their supplies. Realizing they have enough supplies to last them for a year, she eventually discovers a schedule for resupply. With an automated drop in six weeks, the drop off was a site a mile away done entirely by remote drones. Unsure if she could escape by sneaking aboard the drop ship, she knew many of these ships had no pilot compartments and nearly no way to survive the trip back up to the main delivery ship. Making a mental note, she backs out of the system and finds a book she’d wanted to read for a few years, but never had made time. After throwing her dishes in the sink, she drifts onto her bed and begins reading. With her body tired and exhausted she slips out of her robe and slips naked between the sheets, praying that when she wakes it will all have been a terrible dream.

 

After five minutes of drying her hair, Ayla exits the shower wearing a white robe only to find Delphi lying naked on top of the bed. Smiling with inviting eyes, she pats the bed encouraging her older lover to join her. As she brushes out her hair, she loosens the strap around her waist and lets the robe slip open at the front. Settling up against Delphi, Ayla kisses the small woman as her hands roam over and through the gentle curves and valleys.  
“You grew out very well. I missed running my hands through your blonde hair…and all over you, for that matter.”

After another intense kiss, Delphi manages to reply. “As did I! I was angry with Master Vader for sending you away; and I thought, after a while, that he did it to keep us separated. About a year afterwards, I was privy to his thoughts and I realized you were his favorite and most trusted. He trusted me, don’t get me wrong, but he really appreciated and trusted your devotion. It had nothing to do with our closeness or that we were lovers. You were the only one he could send on that mission. So I devoted myself to earning the trust he had in you, and he has been good to me. This huge break, before he arrives, was all my idea and he essentially is rewarding us both for our service and loyalty. I told him you would need time to decompress after such a long mission, and that we could make some headway with his young protégé. She has a lot of hatred towards him, and it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. I think we should start some serious workouts to get her physically up to par, and then work on her mind. She still sees the monster in a suit, rather than the man underneath. If we can soften those edges of hers, we can make it easier to open her mind to the truth.”  
Laughing Ayla brings the small woman into her, mashing their bodies together. “Listen to you! You’re getting all psychological warfare on her! Deconstructing her barriers, exploiting her weaknesses…you are nothing like I remember. Listening to you only gets me hotter.”

Burying her face into Ayla’s neck, Delphi hugs her tightly and nips playfully at her throat. “I’m no longer that little girl you left behind. I was only what? Nine when we met and you left me just before I turned fourteen?”  
Ayla returns the tight hold as she replies. “Hey! In my defense, you were very mature for your age! You always seemed beyond your years. Hell, by the time we were lovers, your cup size was almost the same as mine!”

Delphi resumes laughing. “Ayla, you barely filled a B-cup when we met, so that’s not saying a whole lot! My mom, my birth mom, was endowed with a capital D! Quadruple D’s if I’m not mistaken! I stay very fit because if I don’t, I’m afraid my boobs would balloon up out of control! They would enter the room five minutes before I did!”

Smacking her lover’s shoulder, Ayla shakes her head. “Behave! You really haven’t changed a bit, have you?”  
Shaking her head, Delphi resumes suckling at her lover’s neck as she replies. “Nope! I wanted you to come back and have some stuff exactly as it was when you left. I missed you damn it! I missed you a whole lot, and I just want to ravish your body until you beg for mercy, then I’ll ravish you some more.”  
As their bodies entwine in heated bliss, the clock moves on in hours until they slip into well-deserved sleep. With their sleep cycle broken up when they resume their heated passion, precious tick-tocks pass and they let the hours slip by without concern.


	5. Stinger

Trudging through the thick muddy path cut into the swampy forest, Leia cannot believe she’s getting used to the fifty pound pack on her back. With her pants covered with mud up to her thighs, she pushes on to finish a minute ahead of her personal best since she started a month ago. The five kilometer run along the perimeter of the base was the safe limit of the local wildlife. Not only were the animals and insects less than friendly, but the vegetation had numerous large varieties of carnivores in their ranks, more than capable of capturing and swallowing Leia. The robot guards always hovered protectively overhead during the runs offering themselves as an easier target than the three runners. Leia wondered how long she would last without them, as they had lost sixteen of the units since the first day. Though they would be recovered or return after a day in the stomachs of the beasts, the repair of the robots was also a test of technical expertise for the three students.  
Leia finds her reserve energy beginning to dwindle and sees the finish line within sight. Throwing everything she has into her speed, she growls as she cuts through the thick mud and pushes ahead. As the she approaches the line she trips and lands face first across the line in the mud. As she tries to push up she feels a heavy tug on her leg, and lets out a long scream as she’s drug towards the dense forest. As she reaches for a mono-filament blade on her leg, the scream of blaster fire fill her ears as her robot comes to life detecting the tentacle attached to her leg. Splintering the meaty appendage a inches from her foot, another distant scream erupts from the foliage and the grotesquely mutilated appendage disappears into the mud. As the robot hovers two feet above her, she registers it stand down and spurt out her times.  
“Congratulations! New track time of fifteen minutes and thirty-one seconds!” 

Shaking her head in frustration, she feels Ayla and Delphi pass by and circle back to her. Taking the two outstretched hands she’s lifted back to her feet and wipes the mud from around her eyes after kicking off the loose two feet of tentacle wrapped around her ankle. As Ayla and Delphi look Leia over for any wounds or poisonous barbs often left by several species of pitcher plant, Leia cringes as she yanks a two inch barbed stinger from her right buttocks. Delphi catches her and pulls the quick releases on her pack, dropping the heavy load from her shoulders. Throwing Leia over her shoulder, she carries the unconscious girl towards the base as Ayla caries the bag back. From over Delphi’s shoulder, Leia begins vomiting uncontrollably as the toxin immediately begins affecting her muscular control. Knowing it will eventually put her into a coma, she lets Leia empty her stomach before rushing her into the infirmary. 

After the blast doors open, she sets her down on a gurney parked at the entrance for this very reason. With more of Leia’s muscular control failing, she pushes the gurney along and makes it into the infirmary. Opening up the fridge, she takes a pair of metal tongs and extracts a prepared vial from the stasis field. Loading it into an injector, she finds Leia’s artery and pushes the tip against her skin. With a harsh hiss, the antivenin spreads rapidly through their new padawan learner. Almost instantly, Leia gasps as she takes a large gulp of air as her body begins to fight the toxins coursing through her veins. Satisfied with the treatment, Delphi rolls Leia off the table and carries her to the emergency shower. Sitting her down on the bench, she quickly strips Leia of her clothes and turns the water on. Getting the warm streams focused on her, Delphi unfastens her own boots and quickly strips out of her muddy and vomit-covered outfit. Tossing the clothes into a trash bin, she takes her time washing the paralyzed girl’s hair and body. As she finishes with Leia, Ayla enters in her underwear having taken the time to wash all the mud off her arms and legs.  
“Third time this month, eventually she’ll be immune to the toxin.”

Delphi nods. “I think she’s getting there. She’s conscious but still paralyzed. Last time she was out for half a day before she got to this point. I imagine the next time it happens I’ll just need to give her an antihistamine.”  
Leia lays on the shower bench in humiliation and turns bright pink. Ayla shakes her head and repositions the hair out of her face. “You keep turning your attention to what’s in front of you, instead of sensing everything around you. The force is everywhere, preparing us for the future, not just living in the present.”  
Ayla smiles as she notices Leia nod subtly. “See you’re regaining control faster than before. Ah…I feel what you are doing. Very good padawan!”  
Delphi pauses while bathing and turns around in surprise. “Did she just use the force to cancel out the effects of the toxin? I didn’t know you could do that.”  
Ayla warmly brushes her young charge’s cheek, slipping momentarily back to Alderaan and her role as her protector. “Master Vader was right, she is special. There is much we do not know when it comes to the force.” As Delphi turns back around too finish showering, Ayla leans over and whispers into Leia’s ear before she lifts her into her arms.  
“In time little one, you will be teaching us the ways of the force.”

Ayla waits until Delphi takes over caring for Leia before taking her own shower. Entering wearing just a terrycloth robe and slippers, Ayla smiles at her lover as she sits in a chair beside the bed. With Leia fast asleep, she rises and kisses Delphi as they pass.  
“She’s been out since I laid her on the bed. She’ll be okay, all her vitals are good. She somehow used the force to negate the toxin and is just regaining her strength. I’ll be back shortly to relieve you.”  
Grinning, Delphi snags Ayla and pulls her into an intimate embrace. Kissing her once more with passion, she releases her and spanks her with her hand.  
“Don’t be too long, or I might take liberties on this hot young gal!”

Rolling her eyes, Ayla leaves shaking her head. Over her shoulder she fires back. “I thought you were into older women? If you do, remember: payback is a bitch. And she will get you back for something like that.”  
Ayla drifts into her room and steps out of her clothes and rushes through the shower. She wasn’t joking that Leia would not only be perturbed by being molested in her sleep, but she would know if Delphi had done it. Leia’s mastery of the force went beyond just a weak adept, but was the kind of student who had no limits in her path towards true mastery. A surge of jealousy fills her momentarily, knowing that her student would easily excel beyond her own capabilities, positioning her as Master Vader’s true favorite. Repressing the emotions bouncing around inside of her, she finishes her shower and changes into cotton sleep pants and a tight-fitting half-shirt, conveniently cut in half at the stomach. Ayla was proud of her physique, and had no qualms showing it off around the base. Unsure how it will change once the three remaining adepts arrive, she figured she should enjoy the all-girl team while it lasted. 

Finding Leia sitting up in bed, Ayla grins seeing Delphi leaving Leia’s small kitchen with a bowl of steaming soup. Leia coldly adjusts her robe hiding as much skin as she can from Delphi, making Ayla wonder if she carried through on her boast. After handing the bowl to Leia, Ayla excuses herself and returns to their room to dry her hair. After the door closes, Ayla takes a final set of vitals and wears a satisfied expression.  
“So, did Delphi behave while I was gone?”

Leia nods as she eats her soup quietly. “For the most part. I heard everything you two said before you left, and I thought I’d keep everything chilly between me and her. You two been together since she was about my age when you came to Alderaan?”  
Ayla shakes her head. “No, actually, much younger. She was a vagabond living in the wild streets of Pentok 8. I rescued her from the clutches of a rape gang while I was there on assignment, and she had nowhere else to go afterwards. Her family was murdered. And without a full-time guardian, some other horrible calamity would have befallen her. Besides, she knew how to handle a weapon, and just needed better training to survive, or at least that’s what I kept telling myself. After a while we just kept getting closer to each other until one night and we were forever lovers.”

Leia senses more to the story, and fights from digging deeper. “Pentok 8…that’s about as low-life as a slave world gets. I’ve heard the lunatics run the asylum there.”  
Nodding deeply, Ayla finds the strength to continue. “That’s a fair evaluation. Total and complete lawlessness rules the planet. Not even money has value, only life and its exchange for the essentials. I was chasing a psycho, Agrinom, who loved torturing and murdering military officers; and both Vader and the chancellor wanted him dead. Vader was busy tracking a Jedi camp and didn’t want to pull himself away from his search, so he decided that would be my ultimate test of skill. He wasn’t off in that evaluation. It was the hardest place I’ve ever tracked anyone through. In the end, I left with a skull in my bag, a little blonde girl in my co-pilot seat, and left behind one headless body. Even Vader overlooked my little souvenir.”  
Nodding, Leia pushes forward. “Agrinom…I remember hearing about him. The rebel alliance once considered helping him, until he raped and butchered two of our operatives. They were a married merchant couple who used their business to move through all walks of the galaxy. They left behind four children who couldn’t manage the family business very well. The bastard recorded their ordeal and mailed it to their youngest son. No one missed him when he disappeared and Vader took credit. So, that’s the official story…what’s the real truth between you two?”

With little choice Ayla shrugs and continues. “Truth? Truth is that the force guided me to her. Without her help, I would have never of been able to find Agrinom in that hell. She was the insider that led me to him, and she proved she was deadly with a blaster at only eight years old. There was no way in hell I was going to leave her there after all that.”  
Leia sighs heavily. “What about now?”  
Ayla shakes her head. “You read people like an open book, it’s very annoying. Now…well now I’m not sure I feel the same way about her as she does for me. After nine years on assignment, I’ve changed a lot, as has Delphi. She wants to resume where we left off at, but now I’m unsure if I can rekindle that intense passion we once had. My heart is ordering me to, but something is lacking, and I don’t know what. I used love to get you close to me, and now I think I’m questioning whether there is really a thing called love at all.”  
Leia pats Ayla’s hand and states coldly. “And that’s the price you will have to pay for what you did to me.”  
Taken back by her cold statement, she pulls away her hand as the tears roll down her cheeks and she quickly exits the apartment. Taking five minutes to compose herself, she finally returns to Delphi’s room to put on her best act of love.

*****

Plowing through the last quarter of the run, Leia tightens her pack as she relaxes her mind and feels the forest around her. Pulsing with life every square millimeter around her, nothing in the jungle was classified as truly lifeless. With the dead and rotting corpses of beasts both recent and ancient buried in the soupy mud around her, even they had countless lifeforms filling them. Through the din of life’s chorus, Leia senses her old adversary submerged in his favorite mud pit near the finish line. Extending her senses further, she discovers his poisonous tentacles poised and ready to attack as she approaches. With her robot overhead, she knew it would once again fail to detect his nearly lifeless posture before it struck out at her.  
Closing her eyes, she empties her mind and lets the force guide her across the finish line. With clockwork precision, she sees in her mind three tentacles fly towards her to entangle her limbs. Seeing the window between the onslaughts, she leaps through the twisting muddy appendages and lands on the other side of the line. As her robot starts to give her the track time of fourteen minutes and thirty-three seconds, she raises her blaster out of its holster and shoots. Keeping her eyes closed, she raises her hand in time to capture the third tentacle as it attempts to bury the harpoon-like barb into her stomach. Slowly opening her eyes, she sneers as she holds the venomous tentacle firmly in her grasp. Lowering her blaster to where the appendage leaves the mud, she fires once blasting the limb free. 

As Ayla finishes, Leia throws the filthy limb at her chest grinning. “You can call me Stinger from now on.”  
As Leia disappears towards the complex to shower, Delphi comes alongside her lover and nods approvingly seeing the lifeless tentacle in her arms. “Master Vader will be pleased with our work. We’ve brought her up to speed to where we are.”  
As Delphi jogs ahead, Ayla walks slowly on, and mutters too low to be heard. “No, she’s far beyond us now.”


	6. Rocks and Pebbles

As the imperial shuttle sets down beside the shuttle Delphi piloted, the rear ramp drops and the grim and imposing Sith Lord Darth Vader strides down with three people two steps behind him. Leia watches as Ayla and Delphi drop to their knees in reverence to their dark master, while she stands with her arms crossed against her chest. Lord Vader hisses and stares at the defiant girl, who was on the Emperor’s execution list the last time he saw her. Acknowledging her refusal to bow to him, he motions for his two loyal servants to rise.   
“I assume you have achieved better results in her training rather than her attitude adjustment.”

Nodding apologetically, Ayla replies. “Yes, my master. She is quite adept now, and is ready to move forward in your training.”

In his usual gruff manner, he motions for the three humans behind him to follow as he strides towards the base. “I will be the judge of that.”

Delphi stands and motions for Leia to follow her up the ramp of his shuttle. Cleaning out the kitchen trays, she has Leia bring the spare meals inside as she shuts down the ship and seals it up tight. As she enters the complex after everyone, she is surprised to see the three new arrivals undressing in front of everyone and changing into the same attire as Ayla, Delphi and Leia. Master Vader resumes speaking as Delphi comes alongside Ayla and Leia.   
“Your old identities have been eradicated and cast into the fire. Now you will only know what I tell you. In front of you are my two best students: Fist and Dagger.”

Ayla and Delphi bow accordingly as Master Vader continues.  
“They will get you up to speed on what they already know. In twelve hours, your training will begin. Eat and relax for afterwards training in your new purpose will soon begin.”  
Vader extends his hand towards Leia and hesitates speaking. Ayla immediately speaks up. “Stinger.”  
Nodding, Vader motions for Leia to join him away from everyone. “Stinger, please walk with me outside.”

Taken aback hearing the “P” word come from the Dark Lord, Leia shrugs and walks forward. Exiting the complex, Vader strolls towards the shuttles absorbing the sights and sounds around him before finally breaking the silence.  
“When I was a child, I would have done anything to have grown up on this world rather than the arid dessert wasteland I once called home. Do you know of the world Tatooine?”

Leia shakes her head. “Aside from what the charts say, not really. It’s a Hutt world, right?”  
Vader bows dramatically in his heavy armor. “Indeed. They control every aspect of economic life and are strong supporters of slavery. The Emperor has chosen not to eradicate slavery in his galaxy, as it ‘has its own place.’ I feel that it is a relic of a bygone age…much like myself.”

Leia realizes that the beast she walks next to is hardly the monster she grew up knowing. Sensing an opportunity, Leia pries further.  
“So was there a mom and dad Vader there? Or maybe brother and sisters?”

Vader pauses dramatically as he feels Stinger using the force to loosen his lips. Recognizing the hole he opened, he trusts in the force to guide him.   
“Only a mother, long deceased now. She was killed by sand people, and it was what led me to my eventual fate as the machine man before you. I had great pools of anger and fear as a child, and now I understand why Master Yoda was reluctant to accept me into their academy. I should have been sent back to my little sand castle to live out my years as a pilot in the pod races.”

He doesn’t have to look at Leia to sense her surprise.   
“Yes, as a child I was adept at flying, I was one with the force back then…before I knew what the force was, of course. Damn you Master Qui-Gon! Why couldn’t he have just freed me and let me be. In the end, I suppose I would have become a trouble-maker for the Hutt and led a foolish revolt or ended with some other disastrous conclusion. It would have been better than how things turned out.”

Leia senses the truth behind his words and has to fight from feeling pity and remorse for the monster beside her. “But you don’t believe the galaxy would be in any better shape, do you?”

Bowing in acknowledgement, the Dark Lord continues. “That is correct. If I hadn’t of been the High Chancellor’s puppet, he would have used someone else naive enough to aid him on his march towards becoming the emperor. I was never blind to what he asked of me, I was filled with such great emotion from my loss that I would have done anything he asked in return for my selfish desires, like a spoiled child. The blood on my hands can never be washed away Stinger, and there are some crimes that never fade from the mind’s eye. The Emperor would call me weak, but I have learned that power and control corrupts the mind and spirit far easier than mercy, compassion and knowledge.”

Taking a step backwards, Vader ignites his lightsaber and brings it to Leia’s head. Nodding, he swings it around him then turns it off. “You have indeed conquered your fear and mastered your emotions. I no longer sense it in you. That is but the first step in the mastery of the force, how about Alderaan?”

Leia shivers as the memory of her home world’s destruction flashes across her eyes and a shiver of pain and suffering crashes against her heart.  
“Ah…not as tight of a hold as you first thought. Rest easy Stinger. Know that Grand Moff Tarkin will not be around much longer to savor and gloat over his victory, or the Emperor’s battle station for that matter. The balance of power is about to shift once more in the galaxy, and nothing is being left to chance.”

 

Disembarking from their X-wings, Darka and Delita Gemma jump down and strike their palms together and cheer in victory. As Rattataki siblings, with their hairless and pale white skin, they appeared distinctively similar with their familial facial patterns which many viewed them incorrectly as tattoos. A wolf-like throaty howl, they laugh in unison sharing a private joke between them. Running up behind them, Kyle Quasa, a chiseled young man in his early twenties, grabs the pair by the shoulders and squeezes hard making all three laugh even harder. Kyla tries to tame his laughter as he yells to his best friends. “I can’t believe you got that heavy bomber to chase you. He totally thought he could chase you down and take you out! What an idiot!”

Delita chides as she suppresses her glee. “No he was an idiot by not paying attention to where I was heading! I flew him right into the bridge of that star destroyer! All my brother had to do was nudge him up him up, I slammed on the brakes keeping him from going up any further, leaving him nowhere to go but straight! Couldn’t have done it better if I were flying it myself!”  
From the office, an angry man in his late forties exits and screams at the three pilots. “You three! In my office…NOW!”

Shaking their heads they tote their green helmets and gear into the smoky flight office and wait for the newest form of punishment from elder grounded pilot. Maxis Header lost his flying status from a near-fatal injury five years ago, and his contempt for brash and risky flying knew no ends. As the three pilots look for a place to throw their gear down so they can accept the mass chewing out, he yells at them to keep a hold of their gear.  
“Don’t even bother putting your crap down, this will be quick! It seems that your lunatic maneuvers and reckless behavior has finally caught someone’s attention outside of our unit! And the best part of it all? I finally get rid of your ugly faces once and for all! Effective immediately TRANSFERS! For EVERYONE OF YOU!”

The disgust on Kyle’s face is only matched by the disappointment of the twin’s faces. Kyle tears his open first and suddenly he explodes in excitement! “What…Red Squadron? This has to be a joke!”  
Darka and Delita rip theirs open and discover the same transfer. “We did it! We made it into Red Squadron!”

Maxis shakes his head. “That’s what I thought at first too Kyle, that’s why I triple-checked it. Apparently Red Squadron lost three pilots last month, and someone over my better judgement picked you three. There’s a shuttle taking you three to the Domisea plant to pick up three brand new X-wings and meet up at the Indigo rendezvous point. Someone from Red Squadron will meet you and get you to where you’re supposed to be going. It’s all top secret. Now get out of my damn office.”  
As the three turn to leave Maxis shoots out grimly from behind his desk. “And uh…congratulations. The galaxy is going to shiver from this. Nothing will ever be the same.”  
As the trio departs the secret rebellion base, Kyle hacks into the communications array on the ship, and transmits an encoded signal into the darkness. “The board is set.” 

 

As Dagger runs the new trainees through the daily runs, Fist and Stinger sit on top of the complex meditating with their master pacing behind them speaking.  
“Let it flow through you. You shouldn’t be an obstacle in the flow of a river, but a reed moving and shifting as the river flows around you. You will see the universe around you like never before, witness places and events as they happen. Knowledge of the here and now can drift by your eyes, and yes Stinger, the possible future can be glimpsed.” 

With dozens of large palm-sized stones floating overhead, Leia cannot resist asking the question buzzing across her mind. “So the future is not set in stone, it is malleable?”  
Master Vader nods subtly. “Correct. Many times I have been deceived by the apparent surety of events, only to have them twisted or deformed by the here and now. Do not let your ego or pride blind you; nothing we do here is certain. One stone thrown in a pool can disrupt every aspect of the universe as you know it. We must adapt to the here and now, and be ready to accept change. Even now my plans are in motion, but it takes but one stone to create an imbalance and they could undo everything I’ve worked for.”

Fist, absorbed in the exercise, barely registers her mouth asking a question. “Then how can the force guide us if it in itself is the thing which moves and undulates around us?”

Master Vader nods deeply. “That is where wisdom and experience comes into play, little one. The emperor used to spend over half his day immersed in the force. Now he barely spends an hour, too engorged in his plotting and deception.”

Slowly, the pair of imperial shuttles begin to slowly rise as the pair levitates them. Stinger immediately fires back. “Then why are you worried? He shouldn’t see this coming?”  
For the first time since they had been with the Dark Lord, he lets loose a low chuckle. “That is a trap! Do not let your over confidence or lack of comprehension of the force blind you to what a stray pebble can do! Master Palpatine once warned me of this, and did as I do this very day: set as many stones in the pool to deflect or control the surface of the pond. For when the ripple spreads out from some unknown direction, you can manipulate it enough to make it work for you, not against you. I was that stone for when the ripples of the failed separatists crashed against his plans. You six are my second means of dealing with the ripples which will result from the success of my plan, as my other stones are already in place to deal with the here and now.” 

Turning around, he strides around in front of the seated pair. “In time you will take one of those four as your padawan learner, as will I.”  
Ayla drifts into the flow of the force and suddenly pulls herself out, making the farthest shuttle land with a heavy thud and the area rains down with rocks. “One of them is going to die!”  
Master Vader nods gently and motions for Fist to resume the exercise.


	7. Choices

“What is your bidding my master?”  
Darth Vader remains kneeling submissively as the holographic image of Emperor Palpatine looms over him.   
“I have felt a tremor in the force. The assassin you detected over a year ago has once again surfaced, and is fixated on me. I can feel his rage and raw emotion surging across space. I’m moving my seat to the Death Star.”  
Darth Vader shakes his head. “I do not advise that my master. You will be too vulnerable to attack, either in transit or while you reside there.”  
The emperor tries to dismiss the warning with a flip of his hand. “Nonsense! I’m having eight star destroyers plus the newly constructed Star Dreadnought to escort us there. The rebels can only dream of amassing a fleet to match our firepower. Your doubts of the strength of the battle station are unfounded and disturbing. Besides, I have to ready the station to destroy an old republic world, Pregonus. It is imperative that we destroy this planet. It contains many hidden secrets of a dangerous order of early Jedi. The Sith leveled this world long ago, but its best we wipe away all traces of it like we did Alderaan. Clear your mind of these doubts and carryon your search for these assassins.”  
Vader bows submissively as the display extinguishes. Rising, he strides back out to the training area hiding his confidence and pleasure that his plan is progressing as he intended.

From his royal chambers of Coruscant, the Emperor rises and motions for his servants and guards to proceed with departure. As he turns to exit, a strong-edged redhead bows and speaks her mind.   
“For once, I agree with Lord Vader on this. It’s ill-timed to move to the Death Star, no matter how safe it may be. We can establish a tight security perimeter here, and this assassin will be lured into the dozens of traps we have set for him. You will be vulnerable if you move now.”  
Waving her off, the Emperor motions for the security detail to escort them to his shuttle with his trusted aide in tow. “Dismiss these thoughts. Both you and Vader give this assassin too much credit. If I didn’t know he was consumed with training his guards on that ancient Jedi training base, I would suspect he was the assassin, or at least guiding him. Yes…I suspect Lord Vader is plotting against me now. It is what Sith do, as I did against my master.”  
The redhead tries to suppress her dire concern but stammers out in horror. “No! Should I take care of him for you?”  
The Emperor spills out a cackling laugh before replying. “My dear Mara, you are not that skilled to take on Lord Vader, but I appreciate the enthusiasm. No, I will address his murderous attempts while you counter his assassin. Yes, I feel this creature who burns with a fire greater than the hottest star, is one of Lord Vader’s adepts. And he will be your assignment, and I will attend to my old apprentice.”  
As the entourage of delegates, attendants and guards make their way to the shuttle, a distant scope observes the movement of resources to the private landing pads. With everything proceeding as he planned, the assassin smugly leaves the rooftop and walks to his room to change into his recently acquired Imperial uniform. 

Standing in front of the cold metal surgical table in the common area of the complex, the six trainees stand assembled for Master Vader to receive them. Leaving the communications room, Darth Vader strides to the front area of the complex to where his six students patiently wait. With Fist and Stinger on either sides of the table, the remaining four huddle between them. Across the table, various contemporary metal weapons are set up in no particular order, with two metal quarterstaffs siting in the middle.  
Darth Vader stops just outside the room and speaks. “In a moment, I will release a number of robot warriors; they are programmed to kill you. Before you are the only weapons you will utilize. No Blasters or disintegrations! This is a test of your raw skill with handheld weapons, nothing else. Begin.”   
A shrilly tone erupts and six covered combat robots tear off their tarps and charge the students. In a blink, hands reach for the weapons strewn across the table, and Vader is surprised by each person’s selection. For Fist, he imagined she would choose the chain whip or sword, but her instincts made her choose the first quarterstaff instead. To her left, Siena a reddish-haired blonde in her mid-teens immediately chose the two fighting sticks versus the long sword closest to her. Mug, a tall and nimble Ansionian, chose the other pair of fighting sticks despite their race’s typical abhorrence to violence. Next to him Fernug, a blue-skinned Chiss, had a highly athletic build and was already an adept warrior. He wasted no time grabbing two of the longswords off the table instead of a pair of short swords. With his great stature, Vader understood how he could pull it off.   
Next to him, Dagger scooped up a longsword and a short sword instead of just the longsword. He had never seen her use two weapons at once like that, but he does realize she usually used a vibro-sword alongside her blaster when she fought. Deadly in whichever hand she used it in, she was ambidextrous and that talent had saved her skin more than once in her career. Lastly, Vader was speechless when Stinger grabbed the last remaining quarterstaff from the table. All his instincts had told him she would grab a single longsword versus all the remaining weapons, yet she scooped it off the table and charged swinging it. Mentally he notes to ask Fist if she taught her those skills, but fortunately his heavily armored mask concealed his facial expressions from his impressionable students.  
What was meant to be a show of sloppy untrained tactics, soon turned into a well-coordinated series of attacks forcing the robots to bunch up and be easily dispatched by the heavy-hitters. Fist and Siena concentrated on pushing their two robots back to back while Fernug and Mug smashed theirs in less than two minutes. Vader had programmed the robots to respond to the hits as if they were organics, imitating the bodily damage which the students’ blows would have created. Vader was even more impressed seeing Mug absently blocking and evading every blow the robot attempted, as if it were a child’s game. Putting himself between Fernug’s robot and his, he traded blows between the two robots allowing Mug to easily dispatch them both.   
With their robots inactive, Vader noticed Fernug was ready to let the remaining students deal with their own by themselves; but when Mug motioned to go help Fist and Siena while he helped Dagger and Stinger, the thought was simply cast aside. Though it was apparent that only Siena needed help, it didn’t matter after they committed themselves to helping their comrades. Fist was fighting both her robot and Siena’s at the same time; but with her staff, she made the exercise look far easier than it was supposed to look. Glancing to Stinger, he saw the similar fighting style and was confident that Ayla had Taught Leia while she was undercover. And in less than five minutes, the entire exercise was concluded and Vader was left momentarily speechless. With only two of the robots seriously damaged, he knew that the remaining dents and broken servos would take a few days to repair. Stepping forward into the room, Vader inspects the simulated carnage.  
“Impressive.”  
Both Siena and Fist bow respectfully while Fernug follows suit a moment later. Stepping over the shattered remains of Fernug’s attacker, he absently shifts the armored head aside with his foot before stepping forward. As he reaches the tight pile of inactive and broken robots from Stinger and Dagger, he can’t help but understand the pile’s purpose. Several times the robots lost their footing as it stepped on the damaged robot below it. The trio took advantage of the robot’s unsure footing and slaughtered each one accordingly, starting with Mug’s initial kill. With Dagger and Stinger herding the robots to the kill site, the exercise became child’s play to them.  
“Very Impressive indeed. Mug!”  
In his usual threatening tone, Darth Vader closed menacingly to the tall, large-eyed, single-nostril creature.   
“What made you believe this was a team exercise!”  
What appeared as a momentary flash of fear suddenly turned the creature stoically tall and resentful of the accusation.  
“There is no honor or excuse in watching your companions be slaughtered while you sit idly by.”  
Vader turns to Fernug who nods in agreement. Turning back to Mug, he looks down at the fighting sticks he holds.   
“So how are you adept at handling those weapons? Your species are renowned for their passive and non-violent nature.”  
Mug shrugs innocently. “I don’t know. I was reminded of a youngling game which you juggle a stick using a pair of sticks and it just seemed my best option. I did not think, I trusted my instincts, as my people do.”  
Vader nods in understanding. “Your people are strong in the force, but most refuse interactions with outsiders. You are an outcast of your people. You should be dead, but I rescued you and brought you here.”   
Those last words make Mug bow graciously. “My people refused to acknowledge the threats the off-worlders represent. My warnings were seen as threats against the elders’ wisdom.”  
Vader nods and places his hand on the creature’s shoulder. “When you are done and have fulfilled your destiny with me, you can act as a trusted advisor to worlds like yours from within the galactic council. The Jedi were once tasked to speak for those without tongues, but they became corrupt and self-motivated to help themselves over others’ best interests by using the line: the greater good. The same can be said for you, Fernug, yes?”  
The blue warrior nods and bows his head appreciatively. Closing the distance with Siena he stares down the meek and unimpressive teen. “And you. You were sold to serve as a toy, an object of folly and lust simply because your parents were indebted to the Hutt.”  
The girl nods with a heavy heart. “I hear the life of a Hutt Palace slave girl is very short. No more than a year or two if you’re truly lucky. I was a talented dancer, so it beats some of my other choices.”  
Vader nods. “No child should have to endure those atrocities, and she is strong in the force. One of my operatives sensed her strength and took it upon himself to purchase her before the Hutt could get a look at her. If they had, it would have raised the price tenfold.”  
Leia notices the fire in Dagger’s eyes hearing the circumstances of the teen, reminding her of her own ordeal. Vader returns to the center of the room.  
“All of you have your own reasons for being here, but all of you are here because I recognize your value to the galaxy. Before you six leave here, you will have new names and your futures will be retooled to serve me and the galaxy at large. When your debts are repaid with me, you will be released to continue your work with me, or in whatever function the force has destined you. Some of your futures are intertwined with ours and they will be addressed accordingly like with Siena. The Hutt’s continued profits in slavery are one of my top priorities. I need skilled and trusted force knights to ensure the laws which are enacted are not subverted by the agents we put in place. It will not be your role to police the galaxy, but ensure the people who do, are not corrupted.”  
Master Vader drifts to Dagger’s side and rests his hand on her shoulder, understanding her pain at hearing Siena’s story. Looking at Stinger’s weapon selection, he nods approvingly.   
“Look at each other! Find the ones who have similar weapons as yourself. They are your new training partners from now on. When I tell you to pair up, you now know who you are pairing up with. There are times when I will upset this arrangement, but that is just life. Now for the rest of the day you six will repair the robots so they will be ready to use tomorrow. Stinger! Ensure there is at least one afternoon run before it gets too dark.”   
Master Vader turns abruptly missing the frustrated expression from the students looking at the robot carnage they made.


	8. Insight

Bursting through the foliage and low hanging trees of the swamp, Stinger sees her objective, a small rock building standing on an inconsequential hill cleared of all the leaves and vines. Struggling to catch her breath, she hears a low roar dozens of meters behind her, encouraging her to push forward. Running at full speed, she reaches the top of the hill and spins around with her staff at the ready. The bushes and shrubs she exited explode as an eight-foot long beast roars in frustration discovering his prey evaded him. With skin and fur black as midnight, Stinger can’t miss the enormous claws and fangs the beast wields. With the body of a large cat, the animal paces along the tree line unwilling to continue the hunt. Stinger prepares for his approach but is surprised when the beast flashes his annoyance and returns to the cover of the swampy forest.  
Staring intently along the perimeter of trees, she waits several minutes before trusting her perception of the force is correct that the animal was truly gone before finally turning her attention to the rocky outcropping. As she touches and caresses the stone structure, a dark silhouette emerges from the shadows of the nearby forest and speaks.  
“Your perceptions of the force is correct, this is your objective Padawn.”

Stinger acknowledges her master and turns back to the rocks. Maintaining her focus on the building, she uses the force to easily move the massive bolder aside, set in place to prevent any large creatures from taking up residence within. A low and guttural grinding of rock against rock growls through the air making countless beasts scurry for cover. A heavy weight suddenly crashes atop her as she feels an ancient and menacing force stirred to life by the movement of the rock. As she starts to ask, her master speaks once more.  
“Yes, this is a creature that once inhabited this land in life, and refuses to move along to the other side after its body passed on. There you must go and retrieve an item; exactly what, only you will know.”

Stinger begins to enter with her staff in tow, but is stopped by her master once more.  
“You will not require that weapon. This place uses everything you take in with you. Leave behind all your doubts, anger, and fear as it will only find a way to twist it to its own will to destroy you. This is no longer an exercise, it is your survival. I cannot teach you anything more if you cannot pass this test. The path before us is woven with great hardship, pain, and revelations too disturbing for simple minds. This beast is intertwined in the force and sees the universe in contexts we can never imagine. It will reveal truths and twist them to serve it. You must stay true to your faith that the force will guide you the right direction and not be absorbed in the truths and lies it will weave and contort. Know that I have faced it with success only to retrieve the bodies of those who have failed. There are many bodies buried in this swamp, and I do not relish the idea of digging one more grave today.”  
Stinger nods and reluctantly leaves her staff by the entrance. As she steps downward into the dark cold stairwell, Master Vader calls to her one last time. “May the force be with you…Leia”  
Taken back by him using her real name, she nods grimly and marches down the corridor.

 

With their gear and red helmet in their flight bags beside them, the members of Red Squadron sit down for a private briefing by the famous rebel General Mon Mothma. Waiting until security finishes a sensor sweep of the room, she stoically remains silent until they are done. As the burly security agent nods approvingly, the four agents leave the room and seal the door behind them. With a weighted sigh, Mothma begins.  
“Thanks to an old ally, we were able to retrieve the technical schematics of the Emperor’s new battle station which Princess Leia stole last year. Her fortitude cost her not only her life, but her home world and we will forever be in her debt for her sacrifice. Our analysts have identified a major flaw in the design of the station.”

With a wave of her hand, the holographic projection displays a detailed three-dimensional image of the Death Star and she continues.  
“There is a small exhaust port which feeds directly to the reactor. Its small, maybe only a couple of meters in diameter, but a proton torpedo should be able to travel the length of the tube and cause a chain reaction, thereby destroying the entire station.”

The clamor in the room suddenly erupts as the pilots are flabbergasted by the mission before them. Garven Dreis, Red Leader, stands to quiet his squad and address the room.  
“Now! Now! This is no different than that run we made on that super dreadnought, except of course the size.”

Mothma nods in agreement. “Precisely. And you will not be alone! We are bringing in our reserve fleet and twelve additional squadrons to provide fighter cover. The majority of the fleet will remain outside of range of the laser cannon, and will draw the star destroyers towards them and their fighters. We don’t think they will have time to deploy the super dreadnought housed inside of the Death Star, and their fighters will be too busy dealing with the rest of our squadrons. This will free up your squadron to concentrate their attacks on this sole target.”

As the pilots fire across frustration and uncertainty, Biggs Darklighter scratches at his mustache and nonchalantly shrugs at the target while talking to Wedge Antilles and Kal Sykes.  
“You know this isn’t as bad as it looks. I used to shoot down Womp rat holes in my speeder with my old buddy Luke back on Tatooine. They were no bigger than two meters. It’s doable.”  
Mothma clears her throat. “And there is one more factor in this that must not leave this room. You are being told only so that you understand the magnitude of your mission. Success will not only mean the end of the most dangerous battle station ever constructed in history, but more than likely the end of the empire itself. Our spies have reported that the Emperor is personally overseeing the destruction of the target world, Pregonus and he is residing onboard. If we are successful, we will destroy the two most significant targets in the empire in one day.”

Tanis Cummings, a distinguished politician before the senate was dissolved, stands and points to the display.  
“The fighter squadrons will be hidden at the north and south poles of Pregonus’ most distant moon; and when the Death Star arrives you will cross the distance in less than three minutes. It will take eight minutes for them to charge the weapon and position it for firing. We believe with the arrival of our fleets, they will turn and address them giving you ample time to strike your target with at least five runs before they analyze your tactics and divert fighters to you. So in teams of two, you should be able to make five consecutive passes before they do this.”

As the meeting ends, Red Squadron grabs their gear and head directly to the hangers. With their X-Wings prepped and their weapons uploaded, the pilots begin breaking up and walking to their respective fighter. Waiting until the area is clear of prying ears, Kyle, Darka and Delita shake hands one last time. Kyle breaks the silence with a low voice.  
“Well, this is why we are here. Let’s show these amateurs how it’s done.” 

 

After two minutes walking down the stairs, Stinger finally reaches the muddy landing. Testing her footing, she tentatively walks forward into the darkness. Pulling down by hand low hanging vines and cobwebs, she wishes she brought her staff for this reason alone. Surprised that she isn’t in two or more feet of water, she still has to concentrate on her steps to keep from slipping. Despite the military style boots she wore, the inch of blackish mud afforded her no sure footing through the rotting ooze beneath her feet. Though underneath the rotting muck was solid stone, the mud only made it seem like wet ice. Catching herself twice from falling, she finally passes through the corridor to a vast opening. The ceiling, having collapsed hundreds if not thousands of years ago, leaked long dreadlocks of vines and roots spilling onto the rock floor. Reminding her of thousands of gigantic snakes longer than her worst nightmares, she feels the eerie presence of the beast around every corner.  
The room, easily two hundred feet in diameter, was a round chamber with the remains of the ceiling piled in the center of the room’s floor. Feeling his immense presence centered on the mass, Stinger edges closer, sensing no obvious sources of danger. Reaching the debris, she feels the force calling to her but cannot determine where. Immediately a voice rises from the shadows as if her presence is irrelevant.  
“Please! Take the child and raise her as your own. Her father must never know she lives.”

Another familiar voice rings out, bringing tears to her eyes.  
“I will raise her as my own.”  
Leia cries out in anguish. “Father!”

Spinning around wildly, she cannot not find her father, Bail Organa, anywhere.  
A deep snickering surrounds her as she fights the emotions surging from her heart, followed by unbridled anger for having been manipulated. As it surges out of control, her training kicks in and she inhales sharply and exhales. Regaining her control, she focuses on the invisible beast and speaks.  
“Enough! Away with you deceiver! I have no time or use for your tricks.” 

Laughing, the voice swirls and churns around her. “Ah little princess, so far from home but no home to go to.”  
Waving it away, Stinger focuses on her goal and feels it’s just inside the room. As she patiently paces around the debris, she extends her senses and feels a tugging from the force. She closes her eyes, and is surprised she can discern the room in her mind’s eye. Almost immediately she’s taken back by an immense shape gliding around the great expanse. Using great wings, the beast’s long neck, easily fifteen meters long, ends with a sharp reptilian head and pointedly tall ears. With a long snout, rows of sharp teeth concealed just behind the exterior lips, she cannot help but call this beast a dragon from fantasy stories. The body of the monster was a mammoth twenty five meters in length, and its barbed tail was easily the same length. Incapable to estimate the wingspan of the beast, Stinger dispels her emotions and returns her attention back onto her search. In retaliation the beast belches out more of his madness.  
“So you don’t like riddles, fine by me. Let’s talk just facts then, Princess Leia Organa or shall I use your real name?”

With his antics bordering on infuriating, Stinger returns her focus back to finding the items in question, only adding to the beast’s aggravation.  
“That name is no longer of value for me. I’m just Stinger now.”

Shaking its immense head he seethes out another toothy snicker before replying. “Noooooo. I’m talking about your birth name, little girl. The one your true mother gave you, and the surname which was supposed to be known to you.”  
Opening her eyes, she feels the item is lying just across the room, and she quickly strides towards it.  
“Look, I get that you’re bored. Hell! I would be too if no one wanted to come down here except every few hundred years just to steal from your ancient cache of jewels and…gems.”

With a broad smile she reaches down and finds two identical diamonds nearly as big as her thumb. Pocketing the gems, she begins marching towards the entrance as the beast hisses angrily at her back.  
“NO!!! Not my eyes! How dare you! Fine! Listen here Bitch! Leia Amidala, daughter of Padmé Amidala of Naboo, and the only surviving Jedi relative of the Jedi Order! Yes! You were destined to be a Jedi like your father before you.”

Stinger stops abruptly in her tracks and turns. The beast begins laughing hysterically. “Oh…so you know that name? Well just because I really dislike your master, I’m going to tell you your true surname, just piss him off.”  
With her instincts screaming to run up the stairs covering her ears, she cannot bring herself to do it; and she marches up the lonely stairs with a new name rattling in her skull. Reaching the top of the stairs, she grabs the massive bolder with the force and sets back into place. Master Vader, noticeably relieved, returns with his prized student in tow. Never once exchanging words between them, Vader knows the beast was horribly cruel to her. When asked she refuses to discuss it and locks herself in her room to rest. Lying naked under the sheets, she feels finally liberated and that nothing can make her feel vulnerable after today. With the name Skywalker running through her head, she knows she will have to seek out her brother, wherever he is hiding.


	9. Changes

Stinger laid in bed for over an hour before being driven off by a knock at her door. Sensing Ayla waiting, she finds her bathrobe and loosely covers herself. Opening the door, she is momentarily taken back discovering Fist clad similarly in a matching robe and house shoes. She smiles meekly and Stinger shrugs indifferently before letting her into her room. Closing the door behind her, she joins Stinger on the couch.  
“Um…how did your trial go? I mean was it as difficult as Master Vader said it would be?”

Stinger shrugs once more. “Yes and no. It wasn’t a fight for my life, if that’s what you’re asking. It was more personal. It had a lot of hatred for Vader, and its insight was designed to spread chaos, disharmony and discord. I never sensed true deception, on the contrary, it was telling the truth. I could see that it enjoyed toying with me, and it only got angry when I stopped entertaining it. What about you?”

Fist inhales sharply. “The same I guess. It tried to get a rise out of me by telling me stuff I suspected was the case but I sensed its deception and it literally changed gears and tried another angle.”  
Stinger nods in agreement. “Yah, I sensed that too. Once it realized it couldn’t use a lie to get to me, it resorted to using ugly truths.”

Fist continues. “It asked me to see something about Master Vader, a memory or flashback. He murdered many innocents before he switched sides, that I knew but it included women and children and that struck a chord in me. Even at my worst, I would never go there, but he did.”

Stinger rolls her head back against the couch exposing her neck and inching open the front of her robe. “I knew of his crimes. My father made sure I knew the kind of monster he was. He slaughtered all the children in the Jedi academy, and everyone who tried to stop him. Hardly the man he is now.”

Fist nods and sucks in a large breath before continuing. “Problem is that he showed me even more. The future. You and I. When we are done here we’re to go to Pregonus, if it’s still there, and seek out an ancient river bed. At a long forgotten waterfall, we’re to unearth a sealed chamber and remove an object. When we’re done we’re to bring it back here and it will show us where our destinies lie. Only together can this be accomplished.”

Stinger brings her head back and glares intensely at her old friend. “Why us?”  
With a nervous heave of breath, Fist shakes her head. “Well I guess it’s because we’re the most competent students. Dagger is competent but not as skilled as either of us, and none of the others are even close to her.”  
Stinger rises and strides to the kitchen to get a glass of water. When she finishes she turns to find Fist standing intimately close behind her. Sensing the emotions ablaze in her elder, Stinger nervously shifts and her thoughts turn to outside her room.  
“Where’s Dagger?”

Fist reaches out and rests her hands on Stinger’s upper arms and shoulders.  
“Vader took her to the site ten minutes ago.”

Stinger swallows dryly. “Did the beast show you this as well?”

Fist nods approvingly. “Yes. He exposed a part of me; and since I returned, I’ve been meditating on it. I know why Dagger and I aren’t as intimate anymore, and it was staring at me all along. It was literally as obvious as the nose on my face. You see, it was so close to me, that I couldn’t see it. I didn’t lose the ability to love. I fell out of love for her, and fell in love with the one who was my everything for nearly nine continuous years.”  
With her strong hands she brings Leia into her and they part lips inhaling the other’s breath before merging their lips together. A passionate chain reaction erupts resulting in their robes being torn off and left piled on the cold cement floor. Ayla, carrying Leia to bed, easily moves her into a one arm hold as Leia wraps her arms around Ayla’s tender neck. With her free arm, she tears the covers aside using the force and collapses atop her. With wild abandon, the pair spends the next hour intertwined, and only separating minutes before Vader returned with Dagger in tow. Returning to her respective room, Fist leaves wearing a true blissful smile, the first time in countless years.

 

With their engines shutdown and drifting with only life support on, Red Squadron hung at the southern pole alongside Rogue and Gold squadron. Using the guise that they were there to protect the Y-Wing Bombardment Squadron, Only Rogue Squadron was assigned the task. The prestigious unit was an obvious choice to lead the assault against the Death Star’s exhaust port, thus the choice to assign the critical role to Red instead. Imperial intelligence was nothing to scoff at as they knew the rebellion’s top units as much as the rebels knew theirs. With obvious reasons, they couldn’t just swap fighters as they would soon recognize the flight and performance of Rogue squadron was time tested against Imperial aces, and they would rather quickly realize the deception. With Red Squadron more than qualified to pull off the attack, Rogue was more than willing to let their sister unit take the lead and notoriety, just to maintain their reputation in battle. With Gold’s mission to strike at the flight bays at the equator of the station, tacticians believed Red Squadron would get lost in the confusion allowing them to carry out their mission. 

With clockwork precision, the Imperial Death Star suddenly appears out of hyperspace just as their intelligence had predicted. With the clock ticking, the fighters power up their engines and race desperately to cross the distance in the three minute window. Just as the turbo lasers of the station come to life, the proximity alarms scream out informing the units that the star destroyers were arriving. Watching their chronometers, Kyle sneers as every minute detail was unwrapping as planned. As they arrived with thirty seconds to spare, the star destroyers were reversing course to engage the rebel fleet arriving behind them. With all their remaining X and Y-Wing squadrons at the lead, the Empire was finally showing some concern in their fleet deployments. 

Over the com, Red Two exclaims how the Death Star is turning away from the planet as planned and Red Leader orders Wedge to keep the line clear. Joining Rogue Squadron providing cover fire for Gold Squadron on their first attack run, they hammer turrets and turbo-laser emplacements as planned. Breaking away at the last second in a High Bomb Burst maneuver, they clear out of the way for the Y-Wings to deliver their lethal payloads into the Tie-Bomber bays. With their ships prepping for launch, the secondary explosions ripple out for five decks above and below. With Gold reforming back onto Rogue Squadron, Red Squadron accelerates north to their target.

With communications silence in effect, Garven Dreis leads his squadron to the small trench leading to the thermal exhaust port. With their defense computers interlinked through the astro-mechs, the two lead X-Wings were literally telling the rest of the fighters behind them not only what shots were missing them, but the trajectory where those shots were heading. Hoping to reduce their casualty rate by half, they were fully aware that the system was experimental at best, and it only took one of the R2 units being damaged to reduce the effectiveness of the system. With their computers doing the majority of the course corrections, it allowed the pilots to concentrate on placing the proton torpedoes on target. Spaced out in pairs, Red Leader and Red Three (Biggs) took the lead, followed by Red Two (Wedge Antilles) and Red Four (John Branon). Further behind them were Red Five and Six flown by Sykes and Porkins. The pair had somehow become good friends sharing their love of spicy pasta dishes and rather endowed women. It was no surprise that Darka and Delita were each other’s wingmen as Red Seven and Eight. The brother and sister were inseparable both in and outside the cockpit, practically reading the other’s thoughts especially in the heat of combat. Lastly Kyle (Red Nine) and Theron Nett (Red Ten) worked as well as most pilots do, and filled their appropriate places in the squadron.

With over forty kilometers to travel before they reached their target, dodging the flurry of turbo-laser fire was hair-raising to say the least. With their shields absorbing the stray shot, they knew their time was limited. With the turbo lasers whittling away at the small amount of deflector shields they possessed, even Garven was feeling the stress. Being the lead fighter, Garven is the first to let loose his torpedoes followed seconds later by his wingman, Biggs. As Kyle and his two conspirators understood, getting a proton torpedo to wiggle and twist down the exhaust port was far from textbook procedures. It was no surprise for the three when Wedge calls back that all the shots merely bounced off the surface or impacted at the site. One after another, their fellow squadron members were unable to land the lucky shot down the tight hole; and as Darka and Delita line up for their turn, they instinctively shutoff their computer targeting systems. With the turbo-lasers suddenly going silent, they knew their time was finally limited. Creeping up behind the brother and sister team, Red Nine and Ten know they will have only one quick shot before the tie fighters are on top of them. Listening to their comrades desperately engaging the fighters to keep them out of the trench, they can’t miss Red Leader’s screams as his fighter is destroyed above. 

Leaning into the run, Darka and Delita form up single file to get their shots in one after another despite their controllers screaming for their reasons for shutting off the targeting computers. Following suit, Kyle and Theron line up behind the lead fighters and understand their limited options. Just as Darka approaches the launch point, Theron screams out as his X-Wing explodes behind Kyle’s. Knowing he won’t survive to make his shot, Kyle pulls his X-Wing up into a tight roll drawing the fire of the three tie fighters behind him. As they lose track of him as he leaves the trench, they turn their attention to the last two X-Wings ahead. Dodging the crossfire of turbo-laser cannons trained on him, he lets the force guide him subtly dodging each destructive blast as it passes between his wings and canopy. As the Tie Fighters’ systems work at a lock-on, they suddenly explode one after another as Kyle had survived his tight 360 degree roll and quickly obliterated the three pilots whom he once called friends before his force-training. Over the com channel he screams out to his best friends.  
“You're all clear, kids! Now blow this damn thing so we can go home!”

Darka releases his controls to the force and feels for the shot as Lord Vader had trained him. As the moment approached he relaxes all his doubts and concerns and doesn’t register squeezing the trigger to fire his torpedoes. Guiding them to their target, they twist and churn wanting to stray away from the objective and Darka notes a powerful force desperately trying to deflect his placement. As they threaten to divert, the force suddenly stops interfering and the torpedoes swirl down the port like water down a drain. Pulling up hard, he gets clear as his sister delivers her two torpedoes two moments later behind his. Throwing their throttles to maximum, they race to get clear and try to sense if the Emperor got out of the Death Star in time. Passing the kill zone, without any signs of the Emperor either visually or through the force, they sigh in relief as the massive battle station explodes brighter than anything they’ve ever witnessed or imagined. 

As they get clear, they sense the passing of a vast amount of force energy felt. Mentally noting the experience, they each understand what it could mean. With the end of the Emperor, they could finally take their first steps to restoring a new stable government, free of warlords, politicians, and corruption. Though it was just another empire, it would bring back an old age of harmony, checks and balances dissolved by both politicians and the previous emperor. Returning to their base short four pilots, Kyle and his best friends celebrate enthusiastically are awarded each medals for bravery by Mon Mothma. As the rebels believe the death of the emperor means the end of all empires, they know better. As word spreads that the rebels have big plans for them and their careers, they spend an evening together sending out secret reports and waiting for their new orders from Master Vader. 

 

*Five minutes before the destruction of the Death Star.*  
As the flurry of damage control personnel run amuck contending with the vast number of secondary fires and explosions from the flight bays, Gilmon Faye moves with three squads of loyal storm troopers to the imperial chambers of the emperor. Armed with anti-force armor from an age long forgotten, Gilmon easily overrides the security on the doors and orders his troops to kill everything moving. As the clones rush inside a hail of blaster fire erupts for a minute. As suddenly as it began the room goes quiet and Gilmon enters confidently sensing the emperor’s elite guards are but a memory. Counting a dozen dead red-armored elite guards he nods approvingly. Stepping over his dead troopers, he ignites his lightsaber as he approaches the wounded emperor. Having taken a blast to his shoulder, his right arm was hanging on by just a few strands of burnt muscles and tendons. Noticing the Emperor’s attention split between his current situation and elsewhere, He feels confident his mission will succeed. 

With a painfully gruesome cackle, the emperor looks up at his assassin.  
“Finally I meet my killer. Did my apprentice send you?”

The man shakes his head in denial. “No. He may have empowered me, but someone even more diabolical takes credit for bringing me here today. A vile and disgusting creature of a man who earned his place in my hate filled heart. No Darth Vader did not send me here today, but he made sure I could be here at least to ensure my family’s memory was not forgotten. They died by your hand decades ago, and it’s time that they be avenged.”  
Laughing once more, the emperor reaches out with the force to strangle the man standing before him. As he confidently squeezes, terror overcomes him as the man doesn’t react to the lethal maneuver. Gilmon unbuttons the top buttons of his shirt revealing jet black armor underneath.

“This was a gift from your apprentice. He wanted to make sure I had the opportunity to get revenge, whether I succeeded or not. It seems like I was wise to accept his help. Oh! If you’re stalling me so that your other guard can rescue you, it won’t help. I had her shipped out the moment the rebel ships arrived. She never saw it coming. It’s just you and me now.”  
With anger filling his heart, the emperor seethes. “What makes you think you will escape either?”

Shrugging, Gilmon stiffens his hold on his lightsaber and plunges the blade into the Emperor’s chest and through the chair. As he rests against the dying man, he whispers to the monster below him.  
“What makes you think I had an escape plan? This was a one-way trip.”  
Exhaling his last breath, the emperor of the galaxy stiffens as the Death Star suddenly explodes around him, sending Gilmon to his waiting family and the Emperor to his dark fate.


	10. Winds of Change

Bursting from their separate rooms, Fist, and Stinger look at each in a mix of shock and horror. Looking around the other rooms, Darth Vader steps out from his chamber with Dagger in tow and studies who is poking their heads out from their rooms. Nodding, he orders Stinger to gather everyone who is still alive. Standing in a neat and orderly line, Stinger, Fist, Dagger, and Fernug look at each questioning the whereabouts of their two missing students. As Master Vader returns he speaks with a heavy heart that the students feel through his environmental armor.   
“Mug and Siena never returned from their challenge. Stinger and Fist, please recover their remains so we can give them a fitting passing. Sword and Dagger, please ready the two shuttles for departure.”

Stinger and Fist raise an eyebrow discerning Fernug’s new title and name, while it was apparent that Dagger was already aware of his new name.   
“After you return, we will dispose of their remains and depart this site. The galaxy needs us to restore order, and I feel like I must acknowledge something I’ve been concealing for far too long.”

Nodding obediently, Stinger and Fist grab a speeder and two large bags for their friends. Refusing to use garbage bags, Fist spent fifteen minutes searching and found the body bags in the storage room, unsure and unwilling to know why there would be six boxes of twenty stored in there in the first place. Arriving, they each take a bag and walk down the darkened stairwell. As expected, the great beast flew blissfully around the room, waiting for them to recover the remains. Looking around, Fist stops five feet into the room and grimly speaks.   
“I found a piece of Mug here.”

Stinger almost immediately replies twenty feet from her. “So did I.”  
Their pieces, cut cleanly off at each joint, were solemnly collected as the beast joyfully sings overhead infuriating Fist. Tempted to strike out at the monster using the force, she regains her focus and collects all the pieces into her bag. Finding the torso and head at the top of the debris pile in the center of the room, Stinger scans the room and is disturbed when she cannot find Siena. Finally out of frustration, she calls out to it.   
“Where is she? I want her now!”

His giggling and snickering only raises Fist’s temper, while Stinger remains calm and collected. After a minute, he sighs dramatically and speaks.  
“FINE! She’s in the box by the farthest door. I just did what she asked. She couldn’t bare living with what she and her parents went through so I made it all go away…just as she requested.”

Shaking her head, Stinger stomps to the place in question. Noticing the “box” was not quite what it seemed, she hesitates to spend a moment studying the device. As Fist comes to her side, she stops her from touching it. Using the force instead, they concentrate in unsealing the lid and opening it. As she suspected, it was designed to ensnare the operator and cocoon them in a kind of suspension jelly, preserving the body from decay or destruction. Together, they lift her out and into the body bag and make the next horrible discovery: Siena wasn’t dead. As Fist turns to strike out at the beast, Stinger once again holds her back while Fist fires out her anger in words instead.   
“You fucking liar! She’s alive.”

In a light and whimsical tone the beast sighs dramatically. “Well, technically the body is still functional, but not the mind. She’s gone. The pony was put out to the pasture. I saw her spirit flutter and prance away with her parents. It was a beautiful sight, lots of flowers and green fields, but I forgot to bring my camera. You would have cried.”

As he pours out alligator tears and makes light of her passing, Fist cannot hold back the tears and bravely marches out toting Mug’s remains. With her heart aching, Stinger seals up the bag to Siena’s mouth and leaves it open enough so her body can breathe. As she considers respectfully snuffing out the life from the body before her, some deep insight in the force beckons her to hold fast. She feels the beast hovering over her and he whispers into her ear.  
“Yes…that is it. Now you are feeling the force like you should. I told you if you let it, it will guide you to the next step in your journey. As you may have guessed, I am neither good nor evil. What I do is by necessity, not emotion or opinion. The beast you see is only what I want you to see, not what I used to be. Do not confuse the two. To see me for who I was would only create a visual cacophony of confusion which would distort the message. Even your dear and beloved master knows that. I know his secrets and the names he has used, so even he cannot fool me. He fell to the Dark Side long ago, but cannot go back to the light so easily as one thinks…except in death maybe. Anything is possible in death; but in life, not so easy to do. When you comeback from Pregonus, much will be clearer. Until then, I’m just another insane spirit, holed up in some unknown swamp, on an obscure world, in a faraway galaxy, in an unknown region of the universe, amongst billions of trillions of alternate and possible universes.”

Stinger hesitates as she prepares to walk up the stairs.  
“What was your name in life?”

As he drifts and prances high in the ceiling, he finally replies. “Ah what’s in a name really, aside from power, prestige, praise, and petit parcels of pain? Your master understands this far better than I am willing to delve into. How about you ask him the same question and see what it gets you?”

Shrugging, Stinger drifts up the stairs and casually replies over her shoulder. “Perhaps I might.”

Slipping Siena’s spiritless body into a Bacta tank, Stinger orders the medical droid to monitor and care for the girl’s body until she returns. Satisfied that she reached the limits of her help, she drifts outside to pay homage to the tall friend whom she knew so little about before he passed. In a fiery inferno, Mug’s remains are destroyed and Stinger joins Fist in the first shuttle. Noticing the coldness between Fist and Dagger, she suspected Fist told her of their earlier encounter. Surprised that Dagger wasn’t angrier, later on the trip to Pregonus Ayla confides that Delphi knew she wasn’t in love with her anymore despite her best attempts to prove otherwise. Lifting away from the planet’s surface, Stinger watches as Master Vader takes his two charges back to the imperial capital on Coruscant. Sensing great change in the force, she knows everything she knows and believes is about to shift abruptly. 

****  
Escorting the lone imperial shuttle to Yavin-4, Red Squadron stays in the air as the shuttle settles down and lowers its forward ramp. The Lambda class was finally phasing out the aged Archon class shuttle which downloaded the troops from the rear rather than the front. With an impressive arsenal when compared to its counterpart, it was becoming the standard the empire sought. Three times more expensive than its predecessor, it was direly needed on the front lines against the rebel alliance. Risking the loss of an expensive asset, the empire chose to use this as a risky gambit to ensure the rebels wouldn’t outright destroy their diplomatic envoy before they could deliver their message from Acting Emperor Vader.   
With an impressively armed squad, Mon Mothma personally accepts the communique after her elite guards hold blasters at the three-man crew of imperial officers. With Admiral Firmus Piett in command of the shuttle, he personally handed the message over to the Rebel Alliance’s face and spirit as a show of meaningful sincerity. When Admiral Kendal Ozzel and a dozen flag officers made an ill-fated bid to assume command of the fleet when the Emperor passed, Captain Piett single-handedly led a counter attack and put down the mutiny on the Executor. With the two pilots standing beside him, and the rebel guards stationed inside the shuttle, it was apparent that they could not attack the hapless rebels. In the chaos of the fractured empire, word traveled of the captain’s heroism and rapid promotion to lead the empire’s prestigious Super Dreadnought. Parked in orbit, it patiently waited for the delegation to accept the message from Lord and Emperor Vader.  
Extending his hand, the admiral starts the holographic recording. The image of Darth Vader suddenly appears. Kneeling, Emperor Vader slowly rises and speaks.

“My esteemed Mon Mothma. For too long we have fought resulting in nothing but warfare, chaos, and death. I am partially responsible for the Emperor’s demise, and I am pleased that his death can finally bring order back to our galaxy. Your people have singlehandedly stayed one step ahead of my best officers and I feel it’s time we start working together to bring peace to our galaxy. I am proposing a full cessation of ALL hostilities between our forces, and the end of nearly twenty years of conflict and disunity. This process will be quite complicated and lengthy, and cannot be finalized overnight. I will say that we cannot return to the republic of old, but I am willing to immediately consider any and all other possibilities to include a representative leadership government alongside my choice of leadership. A triumvirate system to ensure no one party has full control would be ideal, but I wish to restore order and establish a powerful military to maintain that order. Many factions will attempt to cut up the empire for their own personal gains, especially countless warlords and gangsters. I want our empire to be one of personal freedom and ingenuity versus power and domination. I know that my word alone is insufficient to convince you of my sincerity, so as a sign of good faith, I am immediately releasing all prisoners.”

A long pause follows as the murmurs of disbelief wash across the assembled soldiers, guards, diplomats, and observer alike. Resuming, Emperor Vader motions towards Admiral Piett.

“Admiral Piett will be my liaison and you will communicate directly with him on the Executor. This is my temporary flagship until further notice. I still have several agents who will communicate with you, but I will personally introduce you to them first. Please understand this is real and not a petty ploy or trap. I am willing to accommodate your needs to come together so you can be assured of your people’s personal safety. May the Force be with you.”

The recording abruptly ends and Mothma looks into the eyes of Admiral Piett and sees someone exhausted from his duties. Motioning to follow her, she leads him into the ancient Jedi complex and tells the soldiers to let the pilots stay in the shuttle for now unguarded. Worriedly, a general whispers to Mothma that they might leave or fly off and she only laughs. Speaking loud enough for the Admiral to hear, she scoffs. 

“Their Flag Officer is coming with me…I don’t think they are going anywhere.” 

Shaking her head, she politely leads the admiral inside to sit down for tea. As security buzzes incessantly outside the room, the pair sits calmly and the Admiral finally removes his hat in respect to the esteemed leader. Breaking the silence, he inhales wearily and realizes he has to actually use his prepared small talk. Believing the rebels would never buy the truth, he expected to be shot or captured upon landing. To have the rebel commander treat him with more respect than most line officers he knew, simply put him off guard. As his mouth opens, he realizes the stupidity of the prepared speech, and choses to take his wife’s sound advice once again.

“We originally had this planet targeted for destruction soon after the Death Star was completed, but Emperor Palpatine was insistent that we hit Dantoine first. He rarely listened to our professional advice, but sometimes neither would Lord…I mean Emperor Vader. They follow some uncanny calling driven by their devout devotion to that Force they talk about. Most of the time they uncannily knew their instincts were on or off kilter, but we never comprehended it. I learned early on to obey Darth Vader at all costs. If you followed his orders to the ‘T’ he would never punish you for obeying his orders, just for disobeying them. And if you took personal risks, and didn’t play it safe, he would rarely terminally punish you. Unless of course you really fouled things up.”

Mon Mothma sets the tea down and pours him a cup, looking at him critically. Thanking her, he puts two lumps of sugar and teaspoon of cream in and stirs gently before continuing.

“When Lord Vader came to me and gave me this message, he informed me of the contents. For two days he briefed me in route, and I can’t tell you how terrified I was. The idea that our two forces becoming one, is something many hard and power-hungry officers will fight.”

Nodding introspectively, Mothma asks gently. “And what are your opinions on this matter?”

With a nervous sigh, he takes a sip and smiles inwardly enjoying the exotic blend of tea leaves.  
“Like I said, if you obey Lord Vader, he will never fault you for the universe not being on your side that day. As for your direct question, I feel eventually we would defeat you, but not after a vast loss of people and resources. I’m sick of this internal strife and warfare. I haven’t seen my family in three years. I have two teen daughters and the youngest is my six-year old son, and they are being filled with hate and lies by the old Emperor’s useless propaganda. He says he wants to grow up and be just like me, but in reality I want him to grow up and be a farmer like his great grandfather. Now he was a man even you would like. Didn’t believe in all this technology and junk, just give him a good patch of land, and he would make miracles sprout from the soil. I admired that man. I want my son to look up to my courage on this day, my pinnacle moment where I sat down and helped flesh out a lasting peace for our galaxy. I want to be remembered for giving peace a chance, rather than crushing it underneath my boots. If you ask me if I think Lord Vader is serious about peace, all I can say is that his actions speak loudly. On board my ship are four hundred prisoners I transferred from our penal facility. Most were outright pardoned, the rest…well some have vast amounts of hate for us, and wouldn’t hesitate resuming their private wars against us. It will not be easy dealing with them on your part, but by releasing even them, you must see his commitment to peace is genuine. If he were lying, it would take us years to gather these people up again, if ever. No matter what you choose now, I will signal their departure orders and I’ll take your decision back with me. We’re still going to have many admirals and generals who will refuse the recall order, as will you. If we can forge a serious peace, I think it will minimize the angry radicals.”

Shaking her head, she sips at her tea and looks the battle weary officer in the eyes.  
“The idea of a standing military will be a hard sell. People didn’t like your formation from day one, but I realize that sometimes order must be maintained and freedom must be protected through the galaxy even if by force.” 

Nodding, the admiral enthusiastically resumes. “Emperor Vader seeks to discontinue the use of clones for our troops and make a completely volunteer military made up of all races and species like you rebels…err…well like your alliance does. He told me that the only way we appreciate freedom is when you lose it. The galaxy has been without freedom for far too long and look where it’s got us. He feels the time has come to change everything, from the top down. We can’t go back to a free republic, but a totalitarian government isn’t the answer either. Get your best people together for this task and bring them to Coruscant. Bring whatever security you feel is necessary, but please come. If not for us but for our children.”

Finishing his tea he rises. “Time is of the essence here. We need to show we are unified in bringing the galaxy back together, but not under a new dictator. He has made that extremely clear. His time as Emperor is limited, and he wants to put in place a new system of government which will stand the test of time. He says he wants to keep this second empire in place until we can flesh out a good replacement, and he has asked me to be a figurehead. I’m not exactly sure what that will entail, but he told me that he has faith in me. Those are words I’d never in a million years expect to come from him, and that scares and humbles me all at once.”

As the train of shuttles depart the Executor and deposit their loads of repatriated heroes to the Allaince, Admiral Piett returns to deliver the reply to his lord and master. Across the galaxy celebrations erupt as word of the ceasefire spreads like life-giving rains to parched ground. From the core worlds to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, the winds of freedom spread out igniting the oppressed worlds. As many resist the recall orders, Emperor Vader consolidates his power to bring the fringe officer back into his control. Realizing months and years are still ahead of him, he senses a new balancing force was rising from the ashes of Pregonus. Trusting his students skills, he accepts their abilities and has faith that they will do what’s right in the end.

End of Part 1.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter for a bit. I need to plan out the next part and work on my other works before returning to this project. Enjoy for now.


	11. Beginning of the Journey

Bursting through the clouds, a crimson Corellian CR90 corvette makes its final turn for landing with eight X-Wings oscillating around the diplomatic vessel. The famous rebel Red Squadron appropriately surrounds the diplomatic delegation providing a revolving blanket of protection around the small courier ship. Once a simple line of freighters, the rebellion transformed the ship into an important line of frigates and blockade runners for the fledgling military. With the apparent end of the war, the ship once again took on a new role as a diplomatic courier. With the delegation containing some of the rebellion’s most important leaders and administrators, Red Squadron was leaving nothing to chance. As the ship touches down the X-wings remain overhead providing fighter cover.  
Lowering the ramp, Mon Mothma leads the troupe towards a patient assembly of six imperial delegates. Not waiting for Mothma to reach them, Chief Ambassador Piett leads his team of Grand Generals, Admirals, and Moffs towards reformation. With a subtle and polite bow, Ambassador Piett welcomes the rebel team and introduces the heads of the military team. Starting at his left he begins.  
“Let me first introduce first Grand Moff and Admiral Tiaan Jerjerrod. His efficiency and understanding of many of systematic operations of the old empire are renowned. Next we have Grand Moff Foga Brill. You might remember him as the Director of Investigation for the Galactic Republic's Judicial Department?”  
Mon Mothma nods cordially obviously biting back her own opinion of the man. From behind her, Chi Eekway Papanoida spits out her disdain. “Your cruelty was well known across the galaxy, even before the High Chancellor took power.”   
With a proud grin, the aged Foga Brill merely bows in appreciation. Regaining control of the introductions, Piett motions to the next man down the row. “Next, let me introduce you to Grand Moff and General Quarsh Panaka. I think you might remember his service to the late Senator Padmé Amidala?”

For once the delegation seems to react positively to the dark-skinned man, despite his cruel and tortuous career after her passing. A staunch supporter of the empire, Quarsh was an extreme proponent of a singularly armed and empowered military for the central government. Remembering the loss of life his world and many others suffered without it, his opinions were universally known. Turning to his right, Piett continues on. 

“And let’s not forget the famous tactician and logistic genius General Jylia Shale, who singularly predicted and orchestrated the evacuation of Tongus Prime of its 2 billion inhabitants. The Emperor felt the world was not fit to be saved, and she and number of admirals and generals took it upon themselves to save the inhabitants before their star exploded.”  
The auburn-haired middle-aged woman bows cordially grinning. “The Emperor only valued his own skin. His pet project was risky and we knew it would eventually backfire and cause their star to chain react. We had only a week to pull it off, and it was perhaps the pinnacle moment of my life, though it damned my career.”

Mothma bows once again. “I’m quite familiar with the event in question. The Alliance was made aware that the Emperor was dabbling with a star-killer project and that it failed horribly. Your name was mentioned derogatively by imperial reports, making us take notice and scrutinize everyone admonished in the reports. You and your brave compatriots were on our list to kidnap to get everyone to safety should things get ugly. Unfortunately for us, he decided not to administer capital punishment and many of you just got your wrists slapped for violating his will.”

Jylia nods in agreement. “Yes...well…the planet’s leaders got a vast amount of support from their neighbors. When word got to them about us violating the Emperor’s orders, and we had dozens of worlds up in arms that we were to be punished. The Emperor had to bite his tongue, chew on his pride, and just administratively move us out of sight.” 

Piett proudly nods and turns to his last delegate. Clad in her red and black uniform, Dagger takes a step forward as she’s introduced.   
“This is Emperor Vader’s aide, Dagger. She is but one of several of his key aides and they are in constant communication with him.”

Extending her hand, she shakes Mothma’s hand confidently. Dagger had only recently completed building her two lightsabers, each a feat in themselves, and was becoming adept at their use while practicing against the training robots. Wearing them proudly on her thighs, she had stopped wearing her blaster after returning to civilization.   
“It’s a pleasure. I’m here to represent the Emperor’s will and intentions in the negotiations. Ambassador Piett is here to ensure the negotiations go smoothly, while I’m here to ensure the Emperor’s desires are met. The generals and Moffs are going to insist that their little fiefdoms and pieces of pie are not sliced and cut up indiscriminately, while some are going to insist that we need to build up the military presence across the galaxy. This is not why I am here at all. I’m not taking any of their sides, only Master Vader’s.”

From in the crowd of delegates an old man asks gently, “Don’t you mean Darth Vader?”  
Shaking her head once in calm denial, Dagger replies. “No. He has chosen to depart from the Emperor’s dark cult, and reclaim his old status simply as Master. He has many new ideas, including inviting all surviving Jedi back to the capitol to reopen their academy, but there will be severe restrictions on both sides of the fence, not just Jedi. He seeks balance, not an unrestricted majority and an angry minority. We cannot have balance when someone is allowed to operate without restraint or impunity.”

Mon Mothma shakes her head in disbelief. “A dissolution of the Empire, negotiations to merge our two factions, and talk of reopening the Jedi Academy. This all seems surreal.”

Ambassador Piett nods in agreement. “If anyone had asked me two months ago if it was even feasible for our two sides to sit down and discuss unification, I would have marched them right into a detention cell and ordered a full behavioral and psychological evaluation. Now, here we are.”

Dagger immediately chimes in. “Master Vader is taking great risk of revolts breaking out and powerful Moffs seizing power while we talk. It would be wise to negotiate as many provisions while you can. The progress we make this week, will decide the fate of the galaxy. The galaxy would prosper far better without a supreme and tyrannical overlord in power, and that is exactly what Master Vader seeks to implement.”

Motioning towards the open doors, Dagger leads the delegates with their armed escorts surrounding them into the corridor. A mishmash of both Imperial and rebel operatives, Mon Mothma’s guards had gone over every square meter of their route and destination, and gave the all-clear as they approached each key junction. After moving through dozens of corridors, they’re deposited in a quaint conference room with opposing security forces facing off. As everyone settles in, Mothma clears her throat and presents her council members.

“As everyone might remember, Chi Eekway Papanoida was once a serving member of the Galactic council. Further down my right, we have Meena Tills who also served on the Galactic Republic senator from Mon Cala. Next we have Commander Col Serra of Renegade Squadron, and an authority on the numerous merchant guilds of the galaxy.”   
The dark-haired man rises acknowledging his name. With a cybernetic patch over his left eye, his appearance unsettled Piett slightly, most from his reputation.   
“On my left we have General Crix Madine, a key tactician and strategist for the Alliance.” The reddish blonde haired man was once a high ranking storm trooper commando, who unleashed a vile bio-weapon across a planet. Struggling to balance the scales against his conscience, he doubted any righteous act cold settle his debt. Mon Mothma diligently continues. 

“And lastly I have Master Kenobi, of the Jedi Order.” The old man from the delegation, uses a staff to rise from his chair and bows graciously. As he sits, he registers numerous sources of hatred and disdain from across the table, but is surprised to feel total ambivalence from Darth Vader’s apprentice. The lack of hatred or anger alongside a subtle level of respect astounds him, and he notes it to meditate over afterwards.

As everyone gets comfortable, an aide moves quickly around the table passing out the itinerary to everyone. Though it was approved long before the date of the meeting was set, it was one of many formalities which were required to occur. Sitting back, Piett’s aide announces each item one by one and everyone gets comfortable for the lengthy meeting ahead of them. 

 

Exiting Hyperspace, Stinger and Fist are amazed at the amount of debris surrounding the planet in orbit. As they turn for orbital descent, she gets an angry controller over the com.  
“Unidentified shuttle! This is the Alliance Cruiser Melba. You are ordered to divert your course to our position and prepare to be boarded.”

Stinger only shakes her head. Opening a line to them, she transmits a copy of their transit orders signed by Emperor Vader and speaks. “Negative control. This is Poseadia One. We are on an official mission for the acting emperor, and have authority to land on Pergonus Prime.”

Fist quietly mentions the three X-Wings turning towards their path and aligning onto attack vectors. As they wait while the man throws a temper tantrum screaming into the open line, he is suddenly cutoff and a polite woman comes on the line. “Copy Poseadia One. You are cleared to proceed. Do you require an escort to the surface?”

Grinning, Stinger replies cordially to the young officer. “That’s a negative. Thank you for the help and keep up the great work. Poseadia One out.”  
Cutting the line, Stinger motions to Fist to continue as the X-Wings turn abruptly off their course and resume patrolling. Grinning, Fist chuckles at her young protégé.  
“Keep up the great work? You never change.”  
Smiling inside, Stinger shrugs. “Hey, it’s not an easy job they’re doing. Even the little guys like a pat on the back once in a while.”   
Turning onto their plotted course, Stinger and Fist spend several minutes meditating on where to make their landing. As if pulled by invisible strings, Stinger points to a location on a map. Calculating the path, they plug in the coordinates and allow the computer to juggle the reentry trajectories and engage the autopilot. With Fist at the controls in case it suddenly fails, they ride down the brilliant lightshow off the nose of the ship, and discover the landing area engulfed in a rich night of stars overhead. Circling the area, they land and decide to nap together until sunrise. When Stinger had suggested bringing a comfortable bed along, Fist thought she was joking, but as the dark night engulfs the shuttle, she made sure Stinger knew how thankful she was.

Cursing under her breath, Fist returns from peeking out the front of the shuttle. Finding Stinger donning her clothes, Fist sighs reluctantly and begins doing the same.   
“It’s a dry heat out there; no discernable moisture and highs between forty and sixty degrees Celsius. We’re going to roast if we’re not back here in seven hours. The atmosphere is barely breathable. There hasn’t been an oxygen producing lifeform on this world for almost a thousand years. We’re lucky we don’t need rebreathers.”  
Shaking her head, she is amazed that she landed exactly where she intended. Overlooking a vast pit, Stinger realizes it was once an awesome waterfall flanked by two great stone structures and both the surrounding mountains and watery ravines below were all ancient memories for the devastated world. Stinger gazes deeply into the rock-filled pits, and discerns boulders larger than corvettes and small freighters. Fist joins her and notices a separation at the farthest point where the water fall would have dropped off. Taking Fist’s hand in hers, Stinger extends her senses and in unison they reach out with the force and begin clearing a boulder larger than fifty shuttles in both size and mass. Synchronizing their wills, the force begins rolling the massive mass forward and away from the base of the ancient waterfall. With a slight tremble from the ground, the object comes to rest and the pair can relax. Nearly collapsing against each other from exhaustion, they take a moment to regain their strength and survey their find. At the base of the pit created by the vacated boulder, a small passage presents itself, signaling the pair to hurry down.   
After an hour trek by foot, they step through the ancient passage, perhaps the first to do so since the planet was leveled by the Sith. As they prepare to don their breathing gear Stinger stops her and takes an exaggerated draught of breath. Almost in unison, they smile in relief and turn to each other.  
“Moisture! Fresh air!”   
Hurrying along they spend another hour traveling along the winding path until they reach an enormous chamber. A natural limestone cavern, with hundreds of millions of liters of fresh water, lay secretly stored. Having turned off their lamps, they are rewarded with the walls of the cavern painted with various types of luminescent algae and moss. Suspecting the plants were somehow converting the rock into fuel or had a root system all the way to the surface, it would take scientists decades to know for sure how they giving off an abundance of oxygen. Reading the levels just above thirty seven percent, firing any weapons down in the chamber could very well be disastrous. Led along by the force, they finally reach the base of the chamber and find a metal container with no apparent handles, hinges or interfaces. Half tempted to leave it alone and carry the entire container out, Stinger imagines the journey could take days.  
Using the force as her guide, she feels inside the box for a latch or release, after several minutes an audible click rings out and the front of the four foot high box swings down revealing a two-foot tall ornate jar. Sealed by a metal collar and lid, it protects its purpose and function from prying eyes. Sensing the container was their objective, Stinger and Fist spend the remainder of the day hefting the forty kilo vase up the winding stairs and back to their ship. As the sun sets over the horizon, Stinger and Fist replace the gargantuan boulders, and rocket off the planet. With another nine hours in hyperspace, they settle down into bed together to wait out the long trip through space.

Waiting patiently in the observation room over the operating room, Dagger watches as the technicians expertly replace Master Vader’s mechanical prosthetics with life-like versions complete with realistic artificial skin. Though only his arms and legs were replaced today, he was still negotiating with the techs to find a suitable replacement for his upper and lower body. Eventually he would need major work done on his head and internal organs, but he knew that everything had to be done in stages. With his limbs completed, he’s helped up and moves far easier than he’s felt in ages. Wearing pants for the first time in decades, he dons a special shirt until his chest and lower body are upgraded.  
Bowing after entering his chamber, Dagger smiles sensing her master’s subtle pleasure becoming a little more human than machine.   
“Master. Stinger has reported that they are returning to our training complex after acquiring a relic from Pregonus. She said they will report in to you after they arrive.”  
Nodding, he motions to come closer. “And what of the negotiations above. How is Ambassador Piett handling his new position?”  
Shrugging, Dagger paces around the room while continuing. “He’s nervous that you’re going to behead him if he makes a mistake. Aside from the jitters, he’s keeping the talks moving, even when the Moffs get tyrannical on him. Grand Moff Brill and General Panaka are pushing for a massive military buildup to force all the remaining Moffs to join, but Piett pulled Brill aside and told him and the rest of the Moffs he represents to cool their heels on the big military push. The Alliance still wants to reinstate the old republic and disband the entire military. Fortunately, the Jedi counselor is advising them to drop the military disarmament agenda. As you suggested, I asked him to recall the end of the republic and how a military was essential in maintaining the peace. No one is quite interested in having the Jedi or force-adepts as enforcers or agents for the new government, so that’s when General Shale stepped in and suggested that we stop the immediate use of clones and conscripts and establish an all voluntary military similar to the Alliance model. Pissed off the Moffs and got the Alliance members keenly interested. I made sure General Shale’s argument was in front of the Alliance reps, because she had a very passionate and valid view of the use of the military aside from wars. I’m planning to make it the lead subject when we resume tomorrow morning.”  
Walking around his student, Master Vader stretches his arms and practices using his new limbs. “Excellent. I will attend the meeting as well. I want to see my old Master once more. I’m hoping we can convince the council that a strong military in peace time is as important during conflicts as an emergency action element. If a standing military was available early in the events which led to chancellor taking power, it could have diffused many events before they exploded out of control.”  
Nodding, Dagger opens her itinerary and logs that Master Vader will attend and make the opening remarks alongside General Shale’s. As he exits the ward, Dagger finally breaks down to ask her master what had been revolving in the back of her mind.  
“Master? How come you’ve have such a hands-off approach to these meetings? It’s apparent that this will drastically affect you in every conceivable way. I would think you would at least be personally guiding Ambassador Piett.”  
Chuckling Vader leads her around the plaza as he explains.  
“It’s very simple actually. A peace coerced in any way will not last. They must truly want peace in order to make it last, and must believe they did it of their own free will. I do not want them to claim I intimidated them in accepting the terms of the new government, so I am staying away for the most part.”  
Unable to fully comprehend or appreciate the theory, Dagger nods robotically and walks silently beside her aged master.


	12. Negotiations

Setting down on the landing pad of the training complex, Fist lowers the rear ramp and retrieves a cargo carrier. Lugging the heavy urn onto the lift, they drive it into the lab next to the medical bay. Leaving it on the vehicle, Fist meanders to her room to report in while Stinger checks up on Siena in the medical bay. Finding no change in the teen’s brain activity or any indications of improvement since they left, Stinger reluctantly leaves her to the droid and begins unbuttoning her shirt. As she begins to go towards her room, Fist exits hers smiling.  
“I reported our findings with Master Vader and he says to do a full evaluation of the item after we rest. He says the talks are going very well, and that we should have a definitive result by their end. The fleet has stopped an attempted coup by several Grand Moffs, and they are mopping them up right now thanks to Sword. He’s turned out to be very effective military liaison. He knew how to lead them and apply the right pressure to the unruly Moffs. Several of Vader’s most trusted Moffs are now in charge and are waiting for the talks to finish. All the old generals and admirals are getting nervous, but their fear of Master Vader is keeping them in check for now.”  
Stinger nods as she considers the event. “Perhaps that’s what our new purpose in the galaxy will be? advisors and liaisons for the new republic.”  
Shaking her head Fist takes Stingers chin in her hand and kisses her tenderly. “You think that Master will let them to reinstate the Republic?”  
Stinger reaches out with the force and smiles after a moment. “Yes, but it will not resemble the old one they are used to.”  
Nodding, Stinger takes her hand and leads them into her room while undressing. Consumed by an inordinate level of passion, they forget their troubles and disappear under the sheets. After a rather lengthy number of hours, they collapse into a deep slumber. As everything surrounding the complex falls under a wave of forced-induced sleep, the ancient urn glows with energy and turns its attention to within the station.  
****

Striding towards the conference hall, Master Vader allows his advance guards to lead the way, especially after the past six hours were filled with revolts and assassination attempts across the galaxy. Two assassination attempts overnight led Vader to tighten up all security teams both around him and around the alliance delegation. Though both assassins were attempting to throw off the talks by killing Mothma and Piett, Master Kenobi took command of a squad of troopers and thwarted all their attempts to overpower the imperial and republic guards. Most of the assassins were imperial officers but a few were noted rebel leaders. What concerned Vader the most were the two Sith assassins who braved taking him and Dagger on as the chaos raged outside. For three hours as the revolt surged around them, he was forced to eliminate one of the Sith’s most adept students he had once trained. A notorious and powerful student he once knew as Lumiya, she called herself Mistress of the Sith and had acquired an adept student, whom had no name before Dagger killed her. The rage and anger she exuded convinced Vader she was behind the daring revolt. Though he sensed Mara Jade was nearby, it was obvious she was unwilling to confront him and his student. As he considered hunting her down, he felt her running away frantically, scared and defeated. Later, historians referred to the horrific evening as the ‘Night of the Bloody Knife’ though technically no one ever used a knife.  
Entering, he comes face to face with his old master, Obiwan Kenobi. A tense moment passes and Vader graciously bows, making Master Kenobi step backwards in shock. The humble act of bowing beyond forty-five degrees and the head hung low was beyond simple respect, and most would say it was an act of asking for forgiveness. Though the behavioral actions of the Jedi were long forgotten by the novice observer, for Master Kenobi he was shaking from trying to control his emotions. As the act was not just about respect, the length of time which he held the bow said much of the intent of the bow. The submissive nature and position it put the person in, distinctively identified it. Coming to terms with the past, present, and future, Kenobi lets out a sigh and returns the bow to his old student.

Standing back from the spectacle, Dagger carefully eyes the surrounding crowd of diplomats and guards using not just her eyes and ears, but the force as well. Though most of the crowd was utterly confused or indifferent to the scene, a select few understood what they were witnessing. For Mothma and Papanoida, they both had numerous interactions and exposure to the Jedi of old, and recognized the momentous event unravelling before their eyes. Though their conversation was just out of range for most of the delegates, Dagger was privileged enough to use the force to listen in to the private exchange. After a minute they part and Vader directs her to the center of the table between the two factions. After everyone finds their seats, Vader motions for Piett to begin.

“Thank you for returning to the table after this past evening. As we are all aware of, forces we never imagined teaming up, have come together to prevent us from establishing a permanent peace. We must finish our negotiations.”  
Kenobi decides to peacefully interrupt the chairman. “Perhaps we should identify what we are entirely against and build on what we agree on?”  
Nodding in agreement, Piett opens his notes and decides to begin on the items they agree on. “First we agree that a totalitarian government was out of the question for everyone, Lord Vader is adamant about this point.”

The nods of agreement are practically unanimous, except for Grand Moff Brill and General Panaka. Satisfied, Piett reads on. “Next we all agree that if we fully disarm, we will be left open for a vast number of warlords, gangsters and Moffs who can slice up sections of the galaxy for their own.” For once Brill and Panaka hardily agree, while Papanoida and Meena Tills of the alliance staunchly disagree. To Tills’ left, Col Serra shakes his head and turns to her.  
“What do you think last night was all about, a bunch of guys going door to door looking for Pazaak players?” 

Dagger resists laughing out loud and notices Master Kenobi subtly resisting from doing the same. Doggedly, Meena lashes out at Lord Vader.  
“This sounds like an attempt to keep a fleet in place so you can simply take control of the senate at another more convenient time and place!”

Oddly, General Madine stops the senator in her tracks by interrupting her from going any further. “If we have control of the military that cannot happen! I know many members of the Alliance are gun shy, but the fact is you must have a substantial force in place to deal with emergencies, both from crazed megalomaniacs and natural disasters. Case in point: General Shale’s move to evacuate Tongus Prime! Honestly senators, how long would it have taken to address the emergency to evacuate the planetary system? I’m not talking logistically, I’m talking from the motion to discuss it in an open forum, discuss it openly, and then the time it would have taken VOTE on whether any action SHOULD be taken? Two? Three? Or even four solid days? Worse, what if a rival faction seeks to delay the vote, happy to see a financial rival destroyed? General Panaka? Does this sound similar to what Naboo endured before the crisis which led to Palpatine taking power?”  
Taken back by the scenario, the General nods deeply remembering the traumatic events of over thirty years prior. “That sounds disturbingly similar, yes.”

Senator Mothma nods in agreement. “They were locked in studies and dissenting votes to address the issue.”  
General Madine continues less dramatically. “General Shale? How many days did it take to evacuate Tongus Prime once you initiated the campaign?”

General Shale inhales sharply before replying, remembering the stressful operation. “After we detected the fluctuations in the coronal signature and decided to do it, it took us six days, five hours, and twenty-three minutes. Less than an hour after we pulled out of the system, the star exploded. It took us two days to gather enough ships sympathetic to our cause in five surrounding sectors, and we almost didn’t get everyone out.

Nodding, General Madine concludes. “A central military operating under specific accords will not need the senate to organize their resources and ask for help from each charter member. Furthermore if we have a system of checks and balances, the military will always be an arm of the government, not a controlling faction. Along with a sensible taxation system for each world, it will help moderate the spending of the military and keep it modernized and cover the pay for the personnel. We’d remove all the old systems of leadership, and replace the sector commanders with senate-elected or specified leaders who are familiar with military operations initially. Over time, we could decide who the best people for the job should fill these critical posts. By establishing an all-volunteer military, the racism and selective favoritism seen in the ranks now would be replaced and eliminated altogether.”

Grand Moff Brill shrugs unconvinced. “That’s going to be a hard sell for many Moffs and sector leaders. Some are treated like kings and gods in their sectors. You’re about to strip them of power.”  
Lord Vader decides to finally speak. “And many of them have served the empire slightly above the competence of a trained pet. I agree many will resist the realignment, but with my suggestion, they will quietly step down and accept an early retirement. As much as I hate to say it, bribery goes a long way for many of those you speak of.” 

Dagger finds it hard to resist chuckling in her seat. As the buzz around the table reignites, Master Kenobi speaks, silencing the chatter. “If Lord Vader is true to his word, then perhaps we should seriously consider a mixed species military. This military would avoid favoritism, act as an arm for galactic law enforcement, and be able to rapidly respond to emergencies and the unexpected crisis which do occur. That is something the Jedi could never fully achieve. I can vouch for the events General Madine described on Naboo. The Jedi tried to execute the Senate’s orders, but too many political factions opposed us.”  
Defiantly Meena Tills spits back. “How can you know of these things Jedi!”

Grinning, Obiwan leans back in his chair chuckling. “I know because I was there on Naboo as it unraveled…as was Lord Vader, though he was considerably younger back then.”  
Raising an eyebrow, Dagger looks to her master and notices him nodding in approval. “That was a long time ago old friend.”

Taken back, Senator Tills quietly ends her argument and sits back in silence. Turning to Senator Papanoida, she sits back in her seat resigning her position as well. Turning to General Panaka, he hesitates in his reply. “If we can agree total disarmament is not going to happen and we will establish a galactic military in the terms General Madine laid out, I think I will find it easier to sell it to my people.”

Looking at last to Grand Moff Brill, he mulls it over and finally nods in agreement. “Yah…it’s acceptable. I think we all just like the idea of a strong military for defensive reasons. No one likes being bullied, right?”  
A slight round of relaxed laughter erupts in agreement. Finally as the moment passes, Lord Vader stands to speak. “I am prepared to step down as acting emperor if we can build a functional government from what we know and understand from our past. The senate of old cannot be again. The new government must have checks and balances built in to limit power and prevent another person from seizing power as in the past. We must accept equal representation, across the entire galaxy, disband slavery and all forms of it, and find a way to limit or prevent corruption from taking root. If you do this, I will gladly shirk back into the shadows and retire from the leadership of the galaxy. I will negotiate the particulars for allowing the return of the Jedi to their temples, and allow the Jedi, Sith or any other faction equal voice and representation at a central forum for those who follow the ways of the force. This is something Master Kenobi and I will arrange.”  
Mon Mothma sighs stressfully. “You aren’t asking for much are you?”

Nodding, Vader continues. “I know what I’m asking for is not slight. It’s a formidable task I’ve laid out, but if you want me to step down, those are my terms. If you comeback with a unanimous vote on the military structure, I will implement it immediately while you flesh out the structure of the new senate. I am here to implement and expedite change across the old empire. You must first construct a twenty person senate exploratory team. It will comprise of ten members of the Alliance, and ten from the old empire. You will construct a functional senate model with the terms I have set, and it must be approved by both sides. Only then will I accept the decisions as fair and unbiased. Ambassador Piett will preside over the delegation and will act as the judicator, but will lack any voting power. You might believe he will be biased, but he has his orders not to be, and failure is something he understands is not acceptable in my eyes. I trust in him and his honor, and there are very few aside from myself I would accept in this role.”

Dagger casually glances over at the ex-Admiral and sees the stress and concern weighing on his shoulders while Vader continues. “The sooner you succeed, the sooner I can step down.”  
As the wave of concern moves around the table, Mon Mothma nods and accepts the terms. Excusing himself from any further discussions, Lord Vader pauses to advise Master Kenobi he can contacted to discuss the return of the Jedi at his convenience. Leaving Dagger to preside as his voice, and to provide additional security, Lord Vader retires to his room to rest and await the communication from Stinger and Fist.  
****

Waking from what could only be described as the longest sleep aside from death, Stinger rouses Fist and slips into the shower. As she’s bathing, Fist steps in to ask worriedly. “It was around sixteen hundred hours when we went to sleep right?”  
Stinger nods and yells out over the surging blasts of water. “Yah! I never believed two people could make love for as long as we did. Why do you ask?”  
When Fist doesn’t answer, she finishes her shower and exits wearing just her towel. She feels Fist’s confusion and fear and quickly sits at her side. “What’s the matter?”  
Handing Stinger her data pad, she stands and paces nervously as she looks at it. “What…” she stops in her tracks when she sees the current time of fourteen hundred twenty hours. “Did the chronometer synchronization subroutine crash in the main computer?”

Shaking her head, Fist comes back to her and lays her finger atop the date. “Look!”  
Stinger shrugs then does a double take. “There’s no way we slept for two days!”

Fist resumes pacing as she talks. “I double checked it, and had the station communicate with the Imperial Hyperspace transmitters to verify the time and date. Its right! We slept for almost two solid days, which explains why I’m famished.”  
Shaking her head, she feels drawn to the artifact. After changing into a robe, they exit quickly. Leading Fist along, she enters the lab to find the urn split open like a flower and smoldering. With its contents destroyed, Stinger curses under her breath. As they stare at each other in frustration and disbelief, the medical droid calmly summons them. Entering the medical bay, they find Siena being helped out of the Bacta tank and into a chair to have the dozens of medical monitoring transmitters taken off her skin. Afraid to speak, Fist and Stinger stare fearfully and Siena breaks their silence by addressing the bewildered pair.  
“Which one of you is Princess Leia Organa?”


	13. Mistakes of the Past

Standing in the once great hall of the Jedi Temple, Darth Vader looks down the deserted halls and feels the countless angry souls biting at him for daring to step foot onto their hallowed ground. Though the emperor would occasionally enter the temple, most troopers disliked their time patrolling the empty complex. Only a handful of imperial officers stayed in the complex, and Vader knew they chose their offices away from the most heinous of the murder sites. As he inspects the handiwork the cleaning droids completed the week prior, he feels the arrival of his old master through the main entrance. Though he had security droids posted to keep out thieves and vandals, it seemed his master got through their barrier. Bowing as Obiwan approaches, his master return the courtesy and bows as well. Joining Vader in front of an elaborate mosaic, he clears his throat. “I have to say that it is taking some getting used to being allowed through checkpoints using my real name and face, especially into this place.”

Nodding, Vader motions to walk down the hall. “I kept my word, did I not? Full access and all arrest and detention orders cancelled. I have ensured the temple was kept in pristine condition, despite the Emperor wanting to demolish it every few years. I had the areas destroyed by fire rebuilt, but just to reinforce the roof and walls. There was no way I would try to recreate the unique architecture which was lost. I always imagined that would be a task for future generations, whoever they were. I had to be creative to keep it intact, and had it as an encrypted communications station for the fleet and as a hanger for the emperor’s private craft.”

A hint of sarcasm escapes his lips as he casually replies. “I see you cleaned up all the blood and bodies. Hardly any indications that you slaughtered hundreds of Jedi and younglings.”

Nodding regretfully, Vader pauses heavily before replying. “And I will live with my crimes long past my death. What you see here is not atonement, do not mistake that. Until you’ve danced with the dark side for as long as I have, you have no idea what it is like to leave it behind and seek the real truth behind the prophecies. I brought balance, yes, but that was but the first step. Over the past weeks since the emperor’s death, I have slaughtered the vast number of Sith which were left behind. I have four learners which will go forth and bring change once again. They are strong in the force, but I am determined to lead them away from the dark, but not into the light either. We must address the temptations the force brings, and I feel drawn to make amends for the past. You may reopen the Jedi academy, but I am going to teach a different way to see the force…an old way, long forgotten. I do not understand the particulars yet, but I sense it will come to me very soon. Separate, our ideologies cannot coexist, but if we find a way to merge them, make them work together despite their differences, it is less likely brother will turn on sister, and so on. We will no doubt have those who fall to one or the other, but let’s provide them an avenue to return back here to the academy no matter what beliefs they follow.” 

Shaking his head, Obiwan marches on through the deserted corridors and inspects the areas destroyed by fire. “What you ask Anakin, is unheard of. Never have both Sith and Jedi trained under the same roof. It’s never done.”

Vader nods and mentally notes Obiwan using his real name. “That’s where you are wrong my old master. I was taught here. I trained here. And yes, I turned to the dark side…here. So I was trained alongside my Jedi brothers and sisters. The principles are fairly identical, except one uses everything the other abhors. If we train not to hate and despise the other, we can achieve not just the elimination of hostilities, but a new type of force knight. Imagine what a Sith and Jedi could accomplish as brothers, rather than rivals? Together they bring an understanding that two of one order cannot achieve. I’m talking about respect. When you respect your rival, it is much harder to slay them like vermin, no matter how weak and ineffective they may seem to the other.” 

Shaking his head, Obiwan finds a bench and sits. “Anakin Skywalker…what you suggest is unheard of. You train completely different for a Jedi. Do you not teach to use your emotions and passion to guide you as a Sith?” 

Nodding, Darth Vader joins him on the bench. With the new artificial limbs, he was amazed on how less imposing they made him feel when interacting with people. “Yes. I see my objective Obiwan, and I feel…I know it’s true. If we cannot find common ground between us, the conflicts will never end.”

Obiwan takes a deep sigh. “Well, I sense that you are correct about that. This conflict and warfare has been repeated for over a thousand years, and it has resulted in so much needless suffering and bloodshed. Let’s meditate over this and see what we can accomplish.”

Rising, Obiwan inspects some of the temple and returns to his quarters with a complete inventory of gear salvaged and put into storage. With the questions ablaze in his mind he surrenders his concerns and anxiety to the force and lets it guide him.  
**** 

 

Turning and looking at Fist in confusion then back to Siena, Stinger finally speaks. “How do you know that name Siena?”

The dramatic redhead stops momentarily thinking, and then suddenly grins in understanding. “Ah…Siena was the name of the person whom this body originally belonged to. Well, this empty husk will serve me now. I’m sorry about your friend, but that person has long since departed, while her body was kept alive. You can call me Master Korma Grampe, head of the Order of the Greys of Pregonus.”

Looking at Stinger and Fist, she realizes that they have no idea what she’s talking about and shakes her head. “I take it that you have no idea what the Order of the Greys is or where I’m from.” 

Looking back and forth at each other once again and shrugging, Stinger replies once more. “Nope, not a clue.”  
Fist chimes in almost immediately. “We have heard of Pregonus, though, that’s where we recovered…you. Aside from that though, we have never heard or read about you or the Order of the Greys. I’ve spent weeks stealing records from the ancient Jedi Academy in my youth, and they never mentioned it once. Sorry.”

Korma sighs roughly hearing the news of her extinct order. “Explains a lot. I guess that’s how effective the Sith were in destroying our world and culture. You still haven’t answered my question though: who is Princess Organa?”

With a subtle shifting of her stance, Stinger reluctantly motions towards her. “That would be me. Or at least who I used to be. The galaxy is in chaos right now from the death of the Sith emperor, and the reformation movement underway. We were supposed to check in already, but Fist…um…Ayla and I over slept. You wouldn’t have had something to do with that would you?”

Standing, Siena takes the robe offered by the droid once she has all the metabolic sensors removed. “I’m afraid so. I had to make sure no one interrupted the merging process. I only had one chance to get it right, or I would be lost forever. Thing is, I have no real conscience awareness I did it, but it’s something I imagine I would have done without hurting anyone in the process. My memories are still very fluidic, but much is returning every minute. It’s like my brain is still sorting everything that was copied to it, and reestablishing the synaptic connections. I hope I’m using the right words for the right concepts. After I rest, I should be more coherent. Before that, can you get me something to eat? This body is starving. I mean look at her! She’s like barely a meter and half tall and maybe forty kilos! This kid needs to eat more vitamins or something.” 

Shaking her head at the dramatics, Stinger motions to follow them back to her room for dinner. Handing her a small box of vege-sticks, she says she can munch on them while she works on dinner. Shrugging, Korma takes the box and tries one. After taking one bite, she discreetly puts the half-eaten stick back into the box and searches the room for a garbage can. After returning from the bathroom, she finds a seat.   
“Now I understand why she’s a waif with food like that.” 

Leia shakes her head and continues cooking a vegetable and meat stir-fry. “Be nice. That girl died in her trials to ascend beyond a padawan. She and her family were slaves. She was originally destined to be some Hutt’s slave girl, but fate intervened. In that role, she would have never have seen her eighteenth birthday. The depraved physical and emotional atrocities the Hutt inflict on them are beyond civilized conversation.”

Having the fire extinguished in her pride, Korma nods and solemnly asks Leia. “How old was she…is?”

Leia begins to plate two settings at the table and invites Korma to join her. “She had just turned sixteen a few weeks ago; practically just four years my junior. Just a kid, honestly; caught up in a big ugly universe of pain and suffering. So she’s all gone huh?”

Korma nods painfully. “There was nothing there to block me, just a big void. Let’s see sixteen…when I was sixteen, my first time that is, I had my full knight status already and was about to be awarded my Seer status. After that is Master, which I got when I was around twenty years-old. I wasn’t a Seer for very long at all. We and the Jedaii collapsed into open conflict thanks to a Sith Lord who tricked them into believing we were their enemies. By the time they realized their mistake and were deceived, the Sith were bombing our world into a pulverized desolate rock. All my people died. And I don’t mean a tribe or a nation, I mean every last Pregonian who tried to escape were either blasted out of the sky or tossed out an airlock to fall back through the planet’s atmosphere. I was dying by then, so I opted to join my people in their final hour. They spent eight months bombarding my world using bombs and expired ordinance. When they ran out of that, they built massive rail cannons and fired large asteroids at us. Many areas were molten seas having penetrated all the way to the planet’s mantle. What sickens me the most is that even the Jedaii buried their mistake, having never acknowledged their failure.” 

As Ayla returns from her room, she sits and takes over with dinner as Leia excuses herself to shower. As she leaves, Ayla asks their guest about her urn they recovered. Korma nods and yells to Leia first. “Now this is food!” Turning back to Ayla she continues. “It was a discovery we made from our campaign against the Rakata. They had a lot of devices, and we figured this one out long ago. We were only able to make a few of them before the end came, and I was given one. It reads your essence, makes a perfect copy and is maintained by the strength of the force in each individual. You die in the process, but we imagined a way to transfer it using nanites. The Rakata used them evilly in their temples and bases as a booby trap to kill their enemies. They liked to gloat that they got the last laugh, and all. We figured out how to transfer it back to living creatures. In a way, it was the force which brought me here and provided me a body to occupy rather than cohabitate.”

Leia returns to the table and Ayla serves her. “So why were you asking for Leia? We took up new names to hide our identities from the Emperor before he died. Leia was supposed to have been executed for stealing the design schematics for his first and last battle station, and our master orchestrated it all. None of us would be here or alive if it weren’t for him.”

Korma nods and finishes her plate of food. “Well, I think we touched or made a connection through the force. I woke with her name imprinted in my mind. I knew she found me, and I knew to search her out. You’re not Jedi, and you’re definitely not Sith, so explain yourselves. What’s your story? Why did you seek me out? I say that because only if you were looking for me, could you have been led to the sanctuary by the force.” 

Leia sighs loudly, opening up the next chapter in their story. “Master Vader was a Sith Lord until he went against his master, the emperor. We felt drawn to go to Pergonus and find…well, we weren’t sure what we would find.”  
Ayla continues as Leia pauses. “Vader felt the endless cycle of warfare and murder was senseless, and not the true purpose of the force. He wants to bring true balance to the force by introducing a third order: not quite Sith, not quite Jedi.”

Korma nods. “Well, yes and no. There’s nothing new about the Greys. Our various orders have been around long before the Sith and Jedi. From our order, numerous orders sprung forth, but the Sith and Jedaii were two of the longest lasting…and were the death of us. Over a thousand years ago, they say you couldn’t count the number of different orders, nor can anyone remember how they differed. From that muck and confusion the solid three survived. And when the Sith realized we were their chief adversary in their expansion, not the Jedaii, they laid plans for our destruction. Our order can detect deception not just from individuals, but from near and far. Deception has a certain vibe, even when it is second and third hand, and we can sense it. Our ethos was the source of both orders. From us, Jedaii and Sith sprung from. The Order of Pregonus was a prestigious one, which kept us incorporated in galactic business and commerce. We never isolated ourselves from the universe around us, as both orders did. Instead we immersed our knights in every walk of life, and were readily accepted as truth seers and seekers of justice, not of law. The Jedaii were big into the laws and mediation, while the Sith fed off wild passion and emotion. We acknowledged both ideologies were valid in moderation, but both took it to the next level. We validated the principles of the Sith, while condemning the extreme abhorrence to emotion and passion which the Jedaii embraced. Furthermore, the Sith hated how we could sense their passionate attempts to deceive and incite chaos and we often identified and unmasked their plans.”

Ayla nods and mulls over the information. “Well, Master Vader will want to meet with you. You sound like what he wanted to install in the galaxy.”  
Leia grimaces. “I’m intrigued about all this, and I would love to know more. I admit, you cannot ignore emotions and passion; and the ways of the Sith are not me.”

Korma nods approvingly. “Then are you two wishing to be my first two students? You know a little about both ideologies, but I can begin to immerse you in mine now.”

Leia and Ayla look at each other at the same moment and grin sheepishly having the same thought. Leia speaks first, cutting off Ayla as she opened her mouth to speak. “Yes, I think I…we are ready.”

Korma chuckles lightly. “Okay. Then we have a lot to do after I’m rested. Keep up your practice and studies until I wake. We’ll need to go shopping for your new uniforms, and I have many rules, but the first is simple: no more secret names. You must be who you are, not who your old master said you were. These are my rules, and you must obey. The rest you will figure out and learn as you go.”

After Leia and Ayla agree, Korma excuses herself and is shown her room. Leading her to Siena’s old quarters, she accepts the lonely bed and collapses into a deep sleep in minutes. After Ayla and Leia spends hours reporting to Master Vader over the string of events from the past two days, they spend an hour exercising before retiring to Ayla’s room for the rest of the evening.


	14. Historical Revelations

Bursting through the clouds of Takodana, Ayla finds a clear spot to set down and double checks the ship before locking it up. As Korma tightens the beige robes, she takes a deep breath and leads them towards an ancient castle. With numerous ships parked haphazardly in the area, she realizes the site is rather popular. With a constant tug from the force towards the massive building, Korma sees little choice but to continue on. As they approach the entrance Ayla stops her.  
“Do you know where you are…or rather who lives here?”

Shrugging indifferently, Korma shakes her head. “Not at all, actually. I meditated over the star maps and this was the system and planet which was shone to me. The force brought us here, and what I need must be here.”

Leia looks at her incredulously. “Serious? That’s it? We just went all this way on a hunch, basically?”

Korma grins confidently. “That’s how the universe works sometimes. You have to live it off of faith.” 

Ayla shakes her head. “You have no idea where we are, Leia?” After seeing Leia shake her head, Ayla continues. “This is the den of the Pirate Queen Maz Kanata. She’s a legend! Well, she is. Always wanted to come here, but never had the opportunity.”

Ayla shakes her head and points the way to the door. Korma strides through doors and is welcomed by soft music echoing through the room. Seeing the band in the corner playing, Korma leads her students to a nearby table and sits. After a few minutes, the band ends and takes a break. Motioning for the pair to remain sitting, she stands and takes a quick look at dozens of various musical instruments stacked in a nearby corner. Taking several minutes to find the right one, she returns to the area the band sat holding a flute. Taking a seat, she tries it out, ensuring it’s in good working order and takes a deep breath to calm her nerves. Bringing the tip to her lips, she begins slowly and plays a low hypnotically morose and depressing piece of music. It fills the room and speaks to each person, making Leia and Ayla’s heart physically ache listening to it. As she plays, one by one, people and aliens alike begin to cry and sob uncontrollably. Immune to the effects, Korma continues as a tiny alien no taller than a meter and a half walks up to her. With her goggles filling up from tears, she motions for Korma to stop.  
“Please stop…my customers can’ take it any longer. Please sit and talk.”

Nodding, Korma stops and puts the flute back in the case. Rejoining her students, the alien woman leaps atop a chair to talk. “My people know that piece of music. It was passed on for generations and the recordings don’t do it justice. My parents warned me that because it’s been so long, that nobody may ever show up to take ownership, but here you are…you are?”

Korma is taken back, and then remembers she’s not in her original body. “Grand Master Korma…” Noticing no glimmer of recognition, she continues. “…of the Order of Pregonus? It wasn’t that long ago for your people.”

Taken back, the small woman counters. “Don’t you realize how long ago that was? That’s over forty-five generations ago.”  
Shrugging Ayla, replies. “What? That’s like nine hundred years. You’re older than that.”

 

Shaking her head, the woman chuckles in response. “In human years, yes; but for my people, a generation is almost five hundred years. Pregonus fell over twenty THOUSAND years ago.”

Hearing the news, Korma falls silent and endures reality striking her in the face. Visibly overwhelmed, Korma sits back quietly as Ayla and Leia lay their hands on her arms comforting her. As Korma absorbs how long she’d been confined, Leia speaks for her. “We were always told Pregonus fell only a thousand or so years ago?”

Shrugging the woman, looks deeply into the young girl’s eyes. “The guilty benefit from the ignorance of others. Pregonus fell because they were betrayed by their Je’Daii allies. From them, the Jedi sprouted but their guilt never faded. It was far easier to make everyone forget it occurred rather than acknowledge their mistake. Now, I doubt anyone but my people know of the black mark against the Jedi of old.”   
Turning to Korma she pats the teen’s knee. “Come you three. You have a room to clean out. Your people’s stuff has taken up too much space over the millennia, and I inherited it from my ancestors. I’m told it started out as a large chest of items. And over time, more of the items were left with my people in case any of the Lost Ones returned. I’m not going to promise that every single item left in our care is there, but I will say the all of the important ones are. I had a thief problem a few hundred years ago, and before I fixed it they had hit all my storage rooms. I got back almost everything stolen, but I was never sure how much was yours or not. I didn’t have a good inventory to go off of, if you know what I mean.”

Stopping an unremarkable room, she unlocks the door and pushes it open for Korma. As Korma disappears into the room, Leia stops to talk to Maz. “You mentioned the Lost Ones?”  
Nodding, the small woman directs Korma further into the room and replies. “Yes, there is a legend that some of her people fled into deep space as the Sith and Je’Daii closed on them. There’s no proof of course, but it is possible, especially if my people know of the story. I heard they were very cloistered by that time, and constructed colony ships. Not many would have gone that route, but it could have been twenty or thirty thousand.”

From inside the room, Korma counters. “It is true actually, but I have no idea where they went. They said they were going to a galaxy far away, but they had no idea how they were going to get there. They planned to use the hyperspace network to get out of the galaxy, but after that they had no idea. And more importantly, I never asked. If you’re right, then it appears they never will comeback. There’s too much stuff here for me to take today. Some of this is not ours, but most of it is. Ah! Found them.”  
Coming back around to the door, she hands a long metal case to Ayla and returns to the back area of the room. Maz leaves them and returns a few minutes later with cart. Nodding, Korma begins loading it up and has Leia and Ayla make trips to and from the shuttle. After the fifth trip, back, Korma fills it up and motions to leave.   
“Well, next time we come back, I promise to empty it out. I’m restarting the Order of Pregonus and I will need this stuff. You have some very important texts, but they are in poor condition. It will take me time to download them and fix the errors.”  
Nodding, Maz relocks the door, and walks them out. As they leave the ancient castle Maz turns to Leia and pulls her down close to her.   
“I’ve seen those eyes before; slightly different but very much the same…in a young man. You will know them when you see them too.”  
Looking at the tiny woman, Leia shakes her head and disregards her words of wisdom for now. As Ayla fires up the engines for departure, Leia notices Maz and Korma talking intensely. Noticing them exchange a subtle bow between them, Korma rejoins them in the cockpit and brings up the star maps.   
“We need to do some shopping. I have a chest full of raw gems and precious metals to use as currency. The gems we can use for your sabers I set aside.”

Shrugging, Ayla calmly replies as she lets Korma flip through the star charts. “Leia and I already have our saber crystals. We have been working on building them for a couple of weeks.”  
Taken back, Korma sighs as she plows through the maps. Submitting her will to the force Leia notices her eyes glaze over as the girl’s attention seems to flow into the maps. Suddenly she raises her head and inhales sharply. “Okay. Well, let’s get some material for clothes. This system.”

Ayla peers deeply at the point Korma’s finger sits. Unable to contain her disdain, she turns to Korma asks with a firm grimace. “Moorja? Really?”

Nodding with equal resolve, Korma sits erect in her chair. “Yes, that world is where we are going.” 

Leia shrugs. “So what’s wrong with Moorja? I’m not too familiar with that system.”  
Ayla shakes her head and inputs it into the navigation computer. “There’s not much there to talk about. We might have better luck here on Takodona.”

Korma nods in agreement. “You might be right, but the force is calling me there. Something or someone of importance is there. We will go, try to purchase the material for our new outfits, and see why we are needed there. My mother and father taught me this method of travel when I was but six. It took me a few years to recognize its value though. My father was better at it than my mother, drove her batty when he could travel halfway across the galaxy and find an uncharted world in dire need. He was so in tune with the force.”

Lifting off, they turn and leave the lush tropical world behind them. As the green expanse transitions to the dark starlit expanse of space, the computer signals its ready and they ricket into hyperspace. Leia nods intensely. “So your parents were Jedi…um…Force Knights.”

Grinning, Korma replies. “Yup, both of them. Dad was a Master, while mom…well…she never got her master rank, but she was happy without it. Dad was constantly busy. And even after he retired from the council, he was always getting summoned as an advisor by the council elders, and he was only in his forties.”

Ayla smiles seeing the fondness in Korma’s descriptions. “Miss them huh?”  
Wiping the stray tears falling down her cheeks, she nods. “It feels like it was only yesterday he was scolding me for not releasing my fear and anxiety and submitting to the will of the force. I miss his strong hands on my shoulders as he whispers the secrets of the force into my ears as I dive deeper into the essence of the universe. You see, this is where a Sith would say that they feed off those raw emotions pouring out of me, and it gives them strength and power by harnessing that energy and turning it into anger and hatred for those who killed him. The Jedi go the opposite route by repressing or simply casting aside these emotions which may give them great focus, but leaves them completely unarmed when they are assailed by them as they build up. It’s for these reasons Jedi often turn to the dark side because they are incapable to deal with the truth of how emotional energy works. Some races are adept at having not an ounce of emotion, but most species aren’t. Eventually they will be confronted by them and must put them in their proper place, as must all emotional beings. As my order learned millennia ago, we accept the good with the bad, that the darkness is just a deeper shade of light, and the power that both sides seek doesn’t come from knowledge or might, but from being one with everything around them; not standing out as a singularity but melting into the matrix of the universe as just one functional aspect. There are too many times when life needs an honest referee. When we sense deception, we can isolate and locate its source, making us extremely dangerous to ill doers. Our elders didn’t recognize that those people can hurt you long after their deceit is exposed. The Sith learned this and used it against us by utilizing the pride of the Je’Daii as a weapon. I spent years exposing their tangled webs, but in the end it was all for not.” 

Leia nods as she absorbs the mountain of information coming towards them. Sinking into the cockpit chair, she dwells over Korma’s insight. Even as the clock winds down, she is no closer to putting all the pieces in order.

*****

Exiting the lift, Master Vader feels his old mater approaching from the lower levels of the endless city. Accompanied by another Jedi, the pair reach him. After exchanging respectful bows between them, Vader hands him a data storage crystal. With a weighted pause, Vader begins.

“As I promised, the list of Jedi and force sensitives killed or assumed dead the Empire had. An inquisitor attempted to format and erase everything we had, but I was watching them closely and backed up all the data. All the Jedi and Sith who were in the Inquisitional Department were executed the hour after the Death Star was destroyed. They were in key positions to take power when the emperor was killed. All except maybe forty Sith are dead; they chose to remain in my barracks under guard for their protection. I am in contact with two of the training masters, and I will offer them a place to study, but only under our terms we make. If they wish to remain without persecution, they may study at our new academy. No more cloistered or secret bases to breed hate and disharmony. If they want to study in the galaxy they must support our government and our way of life.”

Nodding Obiwan, takes the data and hands it to his companion who immediately puts it into a reader. As the man reviews the data, Obiwan motions towards a bench and offers a seat to his old student. Sitting beside each other while the man paces nervously before them, Obiwan breaks his silence. 

“I take it your spies were responsible for giving us the locations of the secret Sith training bases two weeks before the destruction of the Death Star?” 

Nodding subtly, Vader replies, “And all my spies within the Alliance will be offered to come out of their role or continue on living as their identity…at their own risk of course. Nonetheless, they will no longer be reporting to me or anyone I’m aware of. I have several agents who chose to be in my service and they are content with their position as my aide. Two you have seen and two are on assignment. Doing exactly what, I’m not sure. They mentioned that they will end their journey here on Coruscant, but they are unsure of a time frame. By the time they arrive, I expect most of our work will be done old friend.”

The man, at least ten years younger than Obiwan, looks at Vader in disbelief. “What do you mean you don’t know what they are doing?”

Turning to him, Vader remembers a day not too long ago which he would have force choked anyone who dared to question his methods, and laughs out loud rather than getting angry at him. “I allow my elite great flexibility to accomplish their missions without requiring constant reporting and updates. I know and understand their judgement methods and it is without great fault. They are allowed to make personal decisions and know that if they make good judgement calls, they will be rewarded appropriately. They must accept the good with the bad. For every risk that pays off, there are two which do not. If they fail horribly, they may not live to make a second mistake. Under my rules, the messenger is held accountable for the content of the message. Too many officers know this already, having witnessed the consequences of failure of officers before them. Admiral Piett can attest to that if you ask.”

As they chat, Dagger appears before Vader and bows. “Master, the Senate Exploratory Council has been named, and more importantly the Alliance has approved the formation of an official galactic all-volunteer military.” 

The Jedi next to Obiwan speaks in disbelief. “I never would have imagined in a million years.”

After seeing him nod approvingly, she steps back and puts a polite distance between her and the masters to give them appropriate privacy. With countless tasks laid before him, Vader rises.   
“I must go to work now old friend. I need to round up all the loose ends in the fleet, and I must take care of it personally. Let’s schedule regular times to talk and see what we can accomplish over the Holonet. I shouldn’t be too long, but my people are in place to ensure the machine functions as it should. Good day and may the force be with you both.”

After Lord Vader departs, they sit down together and review the data. They shake their heads in disbelief as they read over the hundreds of fallen Jedi. After finishing, Obiwan notices a tiny symbol at the end of the data. Clicking it, their jaws nearly drop to the floor as it secretly contained the known whereabouts of dozens of Jedi who escaped the purge, updated as recently as two months ago. They finally shake loose of their catatonic state and begin planning how to contact the lost Jedi.


	15. Force Interrupted

Exiting hyperspace, Ayla contacts port control and is given a small pad to land. After another twenty minutes, they set down, and are tying into the local net searching for exactly what, only Korma understood. Finding the local textile market took less than a few minutes, but Korma sought out a higher purpose. With nothing standing out, she shrugs it off, and leads her students out to buy the materials. Inspecting each of her student’s lightsabers, she nods in approval. Taking Ayla’s first, she ignites the white blade of her long saber and evaluates the performance. After a minute, she shuts it off and lights up her second shorter blade and is equally pleased. Handing them back to her, she takes Leia’s double-bladed saber and ignites them. After spinning and thrusting the pure white blades in the air, she turns it off and hands it back to her. 

Stopping by the pile of items recovered from Maz’s storage room, Korma opens the long case she first handed Ayla. Extracting three metal pieces, she places each one on the deck and closes the case. Taking the first longer section, it resembled a tentacle beast reaching out left and right for its corresponding parts. Picking up the next part, she forcibly directs the quarter-meter cylinder into the tentacle shaft until a gruesome clatter takes a hold of the piece and locks it firmly in place. Repeating the process with the last section, the metallic arms wrap and entangle the piece as the first, and lock it firmly. Making a rod of nearly three-quarters of a meter in length, Korma grins feeling the ancient weapon once again in her hands. After replacing the power cells with fresh ones she’d charged, she ignites the saber and the darkened deck is suddenly filled by dull white light Verifying its operation, she lets the second blade free at the opposite end and spins the weapon over her head listening to the sound of the air being sliced cleanly. Satisfied, she shuts it off double-bladed saber and tucks it under her cloak along her back. Clad in beige cloaks and matching attire, the three exits the shuttle and make their way to the textile markets. 

As they walk the hectic corridors and streets, they take note of the various wanted posters searching for numerous wanted criminals with crimes ranging from theft, murder, and “crimes against the empire.” Shaking her head, she pushes on and arrives at the market. Spending an hour walking the open-air market, she finally finds a friendly merchant interested in accepting her rare gems as payment. Though the gems were worth more than what she was buying, she convinces him (by not using the force) to deliver the bundles of cloth and material to her shuttle in an hour. With everyone parting wearing huge smiles, she leads her two students around towards the banking district. The district was everything Leia imagined a money-driven street would look like filled with thieves both illegal and legal. As they begin to walk down the street, Korma stops them and whispers.

“This is an exercise for you two. Stop and let the force guide you through the street. It is filled with thieves of every imaginable variety and they all want to do is steal the clothes off your backs and more. They will speak lies and half-truths, but use the force to find the ones who are not filled with ill-intent. When you are done, tell me how many are in the square, without losing any of your belongings. I will walk behind you two counting as we go. I will not intervene unless it gets out of your control.”

Nodding the pair enter the bustle of the streets and are instantly assailed by vendors and street urchins desperate to liberate the coins and credits from their money purses. Remaining polite and courteous, they move through the square and deflect the endless attempts to remove their belongings and money pouches. Consumed with the onslaught, they slowly begin to feel every action before it happens, frustrating and embarrassing the thieves as their attempts are endlessly thwarted, almost before they can try. As they reach the far corner, Korma directs them into a bank. With security scaring away the thieves, they enter but they feel as many dour thieves inside as outside. With the only difference being their attire, Leia cannot believe what she was sensing. 

As they look around Leia whispers she sensed eight, and Ayla nods that she got the same number. Grinning, Korma directs them to a teller and she asks to exchange gems for credits. Nodding, the teller calls over a guard a she leads them to a private office. With a formal title of Precious Materials Expert, the small Ryn was an oddity in many parts but one Leia was slightly familiar with. Seen mostly as military dealers and agents, it was odd to see one as a bank merchant. Wearing a scarlet coat and matching pants, he rises and puts on a rehearsed smile for the human customers. After excvhanigng pleasantries, Korma goes directly to her point and presents a small bag of gems and jewelry for his inspection. Keeping the inspection formal, he takes off his coat to reveal a fine vest without a shirt underneath to keep anyone from thinking he could steal anything by slipping it into his shirt pockets or sleeves. 

Using an open hand, he directs her to his scanning gear and has her place the gems on the platform. Nodding in approval after she’s done, he turns it on and lets the system scan the spread-out articles. After half a minute, it comes back with a reading and he tears the paper off the dispenser. Scooping the gems into a bag, it seals the plastic bag and he makes his offer.

“It says they are all pure and natural varieties of gems. They have good value. I’ll give you fifty-thousand Truguts.” 

Taking a moment to consider his offer, she finally replies. “Make it sixty thousand and you can have the other ten thousand they are worth as a fat commission.”

As he considers haggling her down further, he senses it would be futile and submits to her offer. Making out a slip, he signs it and has her confirm the amount of sixty thousand before signing it. Satisfied, he exits and returns with a bag of ingots and hands them to her. Thanking him they step to the entrance of the bank and place the money in their pouches for safety. Satisfied, they leave and resume walking the streets. As they move past the adjoining street, the three of them suddenly turn to their right and discern three figures walking briskly away. In unison, they turn and react, feeling the vile and murderous intent the three unknown people exude. Shaking off the horrible effects of their evil presence, Korma quickly leads them the direction they walked. 

After ten minutes of brisk walking, they turn and realize they lost them down one of two deserted streets. As Ayla turns around and tries to listen intently, Leia becomes still and breaks into a run down the street to her right. After two quick turns she comes upon the three Sith overwhelming a young blonde man armed with a blue lightsaber. Using the force, she hurls a large empty crate, easily five-feet tall, at them forcing them to break off their assault and address the object tumbling towards them. The group’s leader immediately turns and brings a metal barrel hurtling towards the crate, smashing the crate in the air and bringing the debris down between them and Leia. Obviously perturbed, he begins closing with Leia as his two companions press their advantage on the young man. Raising his bloody red blade of light at her, he seethes with disdain.

“You’re going to regret interrupting official Sith business. As he extends the force, he grabs Leia by the throat and begins to squeeze. Caught off guard, she gasps out and a moment later remembers her training breaking his hold. Growling, he leaps across the mound of debris and is surprised when Leia blocks his blow with one end of her saber-staff and nearly cleaves his head off with the other end just as quickly. Cursing in rage, he throws off his black cloak and prepares to tear her limb from limb, only to step back defensively as Korma and Ayla step out from the shadows.

Sneering, Korma motions for him to step forward. “Come. It is so ill-fitting for you to engage such a junior opponent.”

Still growling, he charges and she draws her saber at the last moment, igniting only one end. As he pounds and slashes fiendishly at her blade, Leia and Ayla engage the two apprentice Sith tied up with the young man. Ayla immediately draws one of the Sith away while Leia joins the kid to fend off his skilled opponent.

Ayla discovers her first lightsaber battle was nothing like what she expected. Instead of a blur of parrying and dodging, she discovers her perception of the force practically guided her through the exchange of blows until she buried her blade in his chest. Though it helped she was adept at using the sword, the force simply provided a guideline on the best route to take against him. Glancing over at her master, Korma was keeping the Sith master busy as her and Leia defeated their opponents and she turns her attention to the young Sith. Extinguishing her blade, she steps back and watches Leia and the young man work the adept Sith into a position which he must either surrender or accept death. Ayla is amazed that the two work superbly together, almost knowing what the other is thinking, making her realize they are superbly attuned to the force. As he feigns to a swing to the man’s legs, Leia leaps overhead and lands behind him. The maneuver nearly costs the young man his life, but with Leia’s landing, the Sith knows his time is coming to an end. Fighting between them, he tries to evade out of the trap, only to land in the final part of their trap. As Leia forces him to address her two swinging blades, his attention wanes momentarily allowing the young man to swing his blade across the man’s stomach, cleaving him in half.

As Ayla moves to Korma’s aide, Leia hangs back to make sure the Jedi is okay. His enthusiasm speaks volumes to her as he thanks her profusely for the help. Elia’s attention is split as she keeps an eye on her master and Ayla as the fight is far from over. The young man blurts out graciously, “Hi, I’m Luke! Boy! am I was so happy to…” 

Seeing the fight drifting away, she shakes her head and motions that she must go. Over her shoulder she yells at him.

“Yah…get going kid!” 

 

As the four quickly disappear down the street, Luke Skywalker shrugs and laughs. “But I never got your name?”

Shaking his head, he picks up his bag, and jogs off towards his X-Wing. As he gets into his fighter, he hesitates as the force seems to whisper into his mind. Standing by his ship, he snaps out of the delirium and takes a deep breath before climbing into the cockpit. Opening up the star charts, he flips through them until stopping abruptly. Changing his coordinates from Coruscant, his R2 unit beeps insistently. Shaking his head, Luke replies.

“Yes I delivered the message to Master Plett but something came up so we’re not done yet. Ben said the force can just touch you and I must be prepared to let it take me where it sends me.” 

Listening to his R2 unit continue on, he stops him once again to reply. “No. I have no idea what’s in the Dagobah system, but it’s where we’re going.”

****

Leia charges into the fight as Ayla and Korma try to disarm the Sith Master rather than kill him. As they get him into a dead end alley, Korma resigns that he will never surrender and accepts what her next task must be. Igniting the second blade, she stops toying with him and presses her advantage, making Ayla and Leia retreat from the fight as it is taken to the lethal and final result. Spinning and swinging her bladed-staff, she stops trying to hit the weapon out of his hand, and is making obvious attempts to kill him. For Ayla, watching Korma fight is everything and more than she imagined, from high flying leaps, spinning and twirling lightsabers at mind numbing speeds, and sabers parrying each other sending flashes of light in every direction. In a couple of minutes, the Sith Master barely had time to scream as Korma beheaded him, ending the fight once and for all. 

After searching him, Korma shrugs. “I was hoping he would have something on him which would give me a clue as to why we are here, but it seems we’re out of luck. What did the kid say?”

Leia shrugs. “I never got a chance to talk to him, and I told him to get out of here.”

Rather than getting mad at her, Leia is surprised when Korma simply laughs it off and nods. “Well, next time tell him to stick around, he might know of a good place to eat. I’m famished after all that. Let’s get something to take back to the shuttle and get going. Whatever we were supposed to see is gone now.”  
After retrieving the Sith lightsabers and taking pictures of the deceased, they stop at a quick meat and vegetable stir-fry shop and take three containers of food to go. Ayla finds an Imperial station and reports they had to kill three murders as they attacked an innocent. After verifying her credentials, he takes her report and the identifications she took off the bodies. Surprised she used the word ‘innocent,’ he waves her off and says he will send a local police detachment to investigate. Knowing the locals or imperials will care little that they are dead, he reasons it will not make anyone upset discovering they are dead. After ensuring everything they ordered is present, they load it aboard and dust off. As they leave the planet, Korma suggests going to get the new outfits made, and once again resumes meditating over the star charts. After a minute, she lays her finger down and speaks. 

“Corellia. I wonder how much it’s changed over the years?”

Shrugging, Ayla sets the coordinates and the small ship screams into hyperspace.

“It’s a key civilian commercial center of the galaxy by exporting some of the best ships and pilots money can buy. Though the empire manufactures their own craft, key Corellian engineers were actively involved in the design and manufacture of most imperial ships. If they weren’t manufactured by them, their people were trained and educated by them.” 

After gorging themselves on the lunches they bought, they spend several hours meditating. Ayla pulls herself away long enough to file a report with Master Vader on their trip, including having to kill three Sith who were trying to kill a lone Jedi. Including images of their faces, she signs out and resumes meditating with the three of them.


End file.
